A Kent NHS Trust has apologised to patients after their records were accessed inappropriately, leading to a police probe into the incident. Letters have been sent out to patients of the Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust (KMPT) detailing that a member of staff has been dismissed from their post after accessing…
Despite the intense publicity around the GDPR, 31% of Chief Information Officers (CIOs), and more than a quarter (26%) of other C-level IT decision makers admit that, even when pressed, they still would not be able to give a clear and concise description of the regulation and how their company has adhered to the framework.…
Businesses could find themselves paying a hard fee of 4% of their global annual turnover — so making sure that you’re compliant with the changes GDPR has regarding CCTV is essential. Here are some of the key things you need to know: You need a strong and valid reason for the placement of CCTV around…
Failing to patch vulnerabilities now will lead to punishment under the GDPR The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has warned that organisations could be punished for existing vulnerabilities when the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is enforced. Although the GDPR won’t take effect until 25 May 2018, organisations that fail to identify and patch vulnerabilities…
An EfficientIP X-Day study says average global spend on GDPR compliance tops £1 million, with less than 100 days to go before the deadline for EU GDPR compliance on 25th May this year. EfficientIP, through independent market research firm Coleman Parkes, asked over 1,000 companies worldwide about their preparation plans for GDPR. Among the key findings were:…
62% of organisations unaware of the GDPR There is an alarming lack of awareness across all industries about the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Almost two thirds (62%) of respondents hadn’t heard of the Regulation, and only about 10% had taken steps to meet its compliance requirements. The survey split respondents into businesses and…
Age UK has confirmed that it experienced two data breaches at the end of 2017 that compromised the personal information of up to 5,000 past and present employees. The charity discovered the incident after it was informed by email monitoring software that an employee’s account was sending an email with sensitive data to a non-secure…
A white hacker recently developed a working “ransomcloud” strain that encrypts cloud email accounts like Office 365 in real-time. A scary thought when so many organisations trust the cloud and software manufacturers like Microsoft to keep their information secure. KnowBe4’s Chief Hacking Officer Kevin Mitnick has produced a live demo to watch the ransomware work…
“Computer researchers have recently found out that the main chip in most modern computers—the CPU—has a hardware bug. It’s really a design flaw in the hardware that has been there for years. This is a big deal because it affects almost every computer on our network, including your workstation and all our servers. This hardware…
Over the past 2 years we have been implementing Microsoft azure backup across our client base. This backup solution offers both on premise backup to disk and an encrypted disk to cloud backup. One of the many advantages of using this solution is it can manage both virtual and physical servers and it will also…
Leading up to Christmas many of us, the staff here included, get lost in wrapping paper, presents and a glass or many of Christmas Cheer! Over the last few days many of us Staff have been to see our Children performing in their nativity plays at school. We have all agreed that this is probably…
Social engineering happens when someone uses manipulation, influence or deception to get another person to release information or to perform some sort of action that benefits a hacker. Hackers will often take advantage of genuine security gaps in your network. But at organizations of any size, layers of sophisticated computer security can be undone in…
We have recently implemented Support 247 across our customer base! This is a remote monitoring and management tool that allows us to proactively monitor and manage our clients endpoints 24×7. Implementation is quick and easy, to deploy Support 247 an “agent” is installed on all required servers and endpoints that feeds us information about machine…
Printers are great when they work, but when they don’t it can be extremely frustrating. Here’s how to solve some of the most common problems. Printers can run reliably for many years and thousands of prints, but they can also malfunction or stop working entirely. Sometimes the reason is as simple as over- or under…
Cyber Essentials is a government-backed, industry supported scheme to help organisations protect themselves against common cyber attacks. Here at Solutions 4 IT we are carrying out Cyber Essential audits for all our clients and helping them gain certification from the governing body, this helps start the long and arduous journey towards the impending GDPR enforcement…
Microsoft 365 is a new product family combining Microsoft Office 365, Microsoft Windows 10, and Microsoft’s enterprise mobility and security services into a cloud-based suite for businesses. Microsoft 365 Business is targeted at small and midsize businesses (SMBs), Both will feature a centralized IT console from which administrators can configure and oversee identity management and…
How important Is Securing your networks? Every time you’re the last one to leave your house I’m betting you close most of the windows and turn the key in the door. Likewise, when you leave your car or even your clothes in a locker in the Gym; you lock it! Every Endpoint whether it…
As you may already be aware, the newest strain of ransomware Bad Rabbit, began spreading across Europe earlier last week. Cyber criminals are tricking unsuspecting targets into downloading and installing, the malicious software. ‘Bad Rabbit’ proceeds to encrypt all files making them impossible to access. In this instance, the malware is disguised as an Adobe…
As many of you know from this news feed and talking with the team, we successfully acquired a Gloucester based IT business called A D Computing almost 12 months ago. One of our most prominent Gloucester customers is Gloucester cathedral, based in the very heart of the City centre. Over the last few months we…
Last week I personally met one of, if not ‘THE’ worlds most renowned hacker, his name is Kevin Mitnick. Listed in recent years on the FBI’s most wanted, he has successfully hacked into over 40 top US businesses. Now he is employed by many of the Fortune 500 to hack their system and implement procedures…
Here at Solutions 4 IT we like to partner with cutting edge hardware and software vendors, therefore we choose to install and configure WatchGuard Firewalls as standard in all our installations. WatchGuard supply a vast array of products to enable us to easily identify and install the correct product for every level of business from…
Back in 1998 the European Parliament issued a directive about protecting data. This led to the UK passing the Data Protection Act 1998. Other EU countries have similar acts but they all vary considerably. The General Data Protection Regulation or GDPR for short is mandatory across the entire EU unlike directives where each member state…
We have recently started fields tests for Skype Cloud PBX, we are running Skype Cloud PBX alongside our current 3CX phone system. A PBX is a phone system within a business and the Skype for Business Cloud PBX add-on gives you PBX capabilities, but without the complicated and expensive equipment. With the Cloud PBX add-on…
We specialise in repairing printers and MFPs (Copiers), with over 40 years experience we can offer an excellent service with a guaranteed 4 hour response from your initial enquiry to an engineer attending site. Our Services Include: Printer / MFP Repairs Printer / MFP Service Printer / MFP Hire Printer / MFP Sales Printer /…
Solutions 4 IT are pleased to confirm the purchase of AD Computing based in Gloucestershire. As of 1st December 2016 Solutions 4 It Limited has announced the completion of its acquisition of AD Computing based in Gloucestershire. We are very excited to be extending our products & Services to Gloucestershire and surrounding areas. We believe…
This Season, Solutions 4 IT Ltd are proud to be supporting Halesowen Town Colts South FC Under 7’s – our local team. In the line-up, we have Jake (Pictured 4th from the left), son of our Senior Engineer Tony Woodhouse. In fact Tony has undertaken and completed the FA level 1 coaching qualification – in…
Read about one of our June Projects here!
Last month some of the Solutions team went Gung-Ho for the Acorns charity! See how they got on here.
It has recently come to light that there is a new scam circulating that shows fraudsters posing as real life internet service providers such as TalkTalk, Microsoft & BT. These scams offer its victims bogus tech support via phone or the internet, and then proceeds to ask for payment for the “support” they have received.…
Our client is a family run business whose current IT equipment was getting old and ther server was poorly configured. We provided them with a new Server, PC’s, Firewall & Switch. Group Policies have now been setup to re-direct users’ folders to the server, and all the data was copied to a central location on…
Solutions 4 IT are going Gung-Ho on the 18th June – don’t forget to sponsor us and come along and cheer us on during the day! After visiting the Walsall Acorns Trust Hospice, and seeing for ourselves the wonderful caring and supportive environment they provide, we wanted to do all we could to help Acorns…
Solutions4IT have been working closely with a business in the South of Birmingham, who, due to their recent growth, needed a server and domain setting up to make the running of their business smoother. We provided a new server and domain installation, as they now have a domain they can use features such as Group…
A number of clients have successfully moved their Email to the cloud based Office 365 solution provided by Microsoft from there onsite Microsoft Exchange 2007/2010 set up. The process involved with this includes – Exporting all mailboxes from Exchange into PST files Synchronising Exchange with Office 365 using the Office 365 portal this includes all…
During the initial site survey, we identified the Customers Exchange required updating from Exchange 2010 SP2 Rollup 8 to Exchange 2010 SP3 Rollup 12. The purpose of the update was to correct several issues found within SP2 and to get them on an up to date version to ensure their email services run as smoothly…
A Virtual assistant sounds like a great idea. That is, if it works. When I had my introduction to Apple’s Siri I had high hopes. In theory Siri is a great idea. Bark out a question and back comes Siri with the answer. That was the theory. In practice I gave up using it for…
Google has setup a workshop on the first floor in Birmingham Library off Broadstreet. Directors of Solutions 4 IT, Mathew Horan & Andy Fletcher visited the venue to attend a pre booked session last Wednesday. Mathew said “We decided to book a 1 to 1 session after seeing an interview on BBC Midlands today. Alan…
Apple launches its Apple Pay in the UK. Now your phone can become your mobile payment provider. Your bank account is in your pocket. No chip. No pin. No hassle. Or is it? People are naturally worried about security. Could it compromise your bank or credit card details? Well the answer appears to be no.…
Computer hacking is becoming more prevalent and damaging. It’s hard to believe that very large organisations are being compromised more and more even though they put up firewalls and barriers. Despite the increased occurrences of computer hacking and heightened risk many organisations are continuing to operate with precious little regard for the potential consequences. There…
It’s a glorious day. Temperatures are set to reach record-breaking levels. Look at our forecast. Lovely if you can kick back in the garden with your favourite chilled drink. Not so good for computers operating in uncontrolled environments. Like people, they get hot and bothered. They can randomly shutdown, which always happens at the most…
Security cameras are everywhere now. When we go shopping our every move is monitored, often from several different angles. It’s extended way beyond “shrinkage” prevention. Offices, shopping centres, town and city centres, entertainment venues, railway stations, pubs, bars and restaurants are all covered with high tech cameras. Most of them are capable of zooming in…
If you can’t trust the banks who can you trust? Another day, another banking debacle. RBS has messed up again. This time involving over half a million payments. That means its customers suffer. They say they’re very sorry and will make sure nobody is left out of pocket. Money is one thing but how can…
The Apple World Wide Developer Conference keynote address was 2 hours long. To save you 1 hour and 57 minutes, here’s the highlights: The latest Mac operating system is announced to follow Yosemite – it’s called OS X El Capitan. Multitasking is coming for iPads. New split screen functionality has been developed to allow users…
Plug it in and go. You’ve quickly solved your storage problem. Or have you? Quite often it seems like the immediate, obvious solution to the age-old problem of running out of disc space. Grab an external hard drive, add it to your system and away you go. External hard drives do have their uses but…
Imagine being able to do your own operation. Surgery, in the comfort of your home, with no scars, scratches or anaesthetic required. And if you get the surgery completely wrong, no problem, just start again because nobody felt a thing. In the virtual world of iPad surgery it’s now possible. Touch Surgery have used all…
Apple Watch apparently has complications coming. It’s good, not bad news. Complications is the name being given to add-ons to the Apple Watch face that are going to be opened up to non-Apple content. If and when the update happens third-party developers will be able to come up with apps to push information to the…
Imagine having a chauffeur that’s invisible, takes no salary or holiday and is never off sick. How about the idea of never having to find a parking space because you get driven to where you want to go, then send your car home until you want picking up later? It might sound like pie in…
Dubbed the next big thing in the cloud, Docker was doing well. It was widely accepted as the industry standard for coders to effectively “containerise” their software to spread it and enable it, virtually, anywhere. Then along came Rocket (rkt), another open-source (free for anyone to use) Application Container specification. Wired.com sees this as being…
In theory, this is a great product. The August door lock, complete with smart phone integration. Imagine being able to issue “virtual keys” to anyone you want without having to go out and get physical keys cut each time? Imagine being able to “virtually” change your lock without having to change anything more than a…
It was widely speculated in the 70s and 80s on TV programmes like Tomorrow’s World, that by the 90s we’d all be living in a paperless world. Everything would be digital, they asserted with great confidence. Well it hasn’t quite turned out they way they predicted just yet…. The average office worker still consumes around…
Microsoft Server 2003 operating software might not seem very old but there’s not much time before Microsoft discontinues support for it. It doesn’t feel like long ago when Windows XP was the “real deal” but would you believe it’s been a full year since Microsoft finished supporting it? Running operating systems that are out of…
How’s your RAM? Random access memory is the part of your computer that’s dedicated to doing the “heavy lifting” whilst you click away at your mouse and keyboard – hopefully churning out your desired results at the end. It’s normally fast but then it forgets everything it just did. Flash memory does a similar job…
If you’ve ever had one of your online accounts compromised you’ll know how terrifying it can feel to be a victim. Personal details often sit alongside your credit card and banking information and the havoc that is regularly caused by cyber-fraudsters is increasing daily. The internet’s great but there are no borders or boundaries, no…
Remotely accessing your work computer isn’t new – you may already have the facility at your organisation, but is it safe? Not only do you need to protect your operation from the potential external intruder hacking into your server but there’s also the possibility of an unscrupulous or even disgruntled member of your team gaining…
The sheer volume of digital information we’re keeping now means that every day we’re at risk of breaching data protection laws dozens of times at work. The consequences are very serious and it’s not just down to one single discipline to manage; just about everybody in a business nowadays is just a few clicks away…
The anticipation amongst technology-geeks has been reaching fever-pitch-that is within the Apple-loving quarter of tech-lovers. Apple Watch is finally here. You could be forgiven for thinking that it was already here as it had a soft-launch about six months ago but various technology experts are giving it a cautiously down-beat chance of hitting the huge…
It’s the kind of thing that those of us over forty remember seeing on futuristic TV show, “Tomorrow’s World” and thinking, “No chance!” A piece of equipment that’s on call 24/7. Waiting. Listening. You give it a verbal instruction and it sets about doing what you tell it to do. Like having your very own…
If you’re one of the people who, like me, as soon as you find yourself working on a laptop you’re searching around for a mouse to plug in then you might be surprised at Hewlett Packard’s newest innovation in desktop PCs. Introducing the Sprout! No mouse of keyboard required. Really. It comes with a nifty…
Broadband is coming under ever-increasing pressure. Consumers want more and more data and downloads and much of the network of wire that carries the data is either old copper or, even worse, aluminium that is simply rotting away. Broadband simply hasn’t kept pace with technological advances. The answer to your connectivity problems could well be…
Launched in 2011 with high-energy skydivers and stunt cyclists, Google Glass promised so much. A bit like having your own virtual personal assistant with you on call 24/7, ready to take your instructions and cater to your every technological whim. It promised the ultimate in wearable technology – seamless device integration and so much more.…
When construction and the housing market picks up activity it’s usually a good strong sign of economic uplift and here at Solutions4IT one of the indicators that we monitor is the level of requests from clients to add new users to their databases. Solutions4IT’s Steve Downing explains that he’s handled five separate clients’ new additions…
Solutions4IT currently has 3 projects underway to import clients’ Microsoft Exchange requirements into the Solutions4IT cloud environment. It’s become a popular request from clients since Microsoft discontinued its small business server offering. Solutions4IT Helpdesk’s Lynsey Nock says, “Previously many small and medium sized businesses used to run their email requirements on premises but with Microsoft…
In typical BBC local radio style, the presenter was giving his guest from BT a “Jeremy Paxman” type of verbal mauling over broadband service levels. “Who are you to decide that 1.5mb speed is simply not fast enough?” barked the presenter. The hapless guy from BT was in a no-win situation. Trying to defend the…
Imagine this. You’ve spent countless hours writing a book and every word is authored on your trusted laptop. You open up the screen, boot it up and ………..nothing. It’s your worst nightmare come true. We all know that we should keep multiple backups in different locations for security but back in the real world, there’s…
Microsoft’s Sharepoint allows users to collaborate on documents and files with versioning – enabling you to track changes and modify content without destroying the originals. Solutions4IT has just installed full data and document management for a large corporate client that had completely outgrown its existing set up. Solutins4IT’s Lynsey Nock looked after the migration, “Performance…
Solutions4IT delivers IT support to a wide range of businesses across the midlands. We also spread happiness by placing every one of our customers and subscribers into a free draw to win a brand new ipad. Recent winners include Brian Griffiths, Managing Director of FTL Foundry Equipment Limited in Willenhall and Mick Mills of Wombourne…
We’ve just completed yet another VOIP phone installation for one of our clients within the manufacturing industry. The benefits over traditional phone lines are massive. The system runs over a leased line with 99.9% uptime plus a failsafe ADSL backup to deliver a completely robust, high quality, flexible service. The virtual switchboard has 30 handsets…
It takes 3-4 months of careful planning to introduce a large virtualisation scheme to a significant installation without disrupting day-to-day activities. It’s what we do at Solutions4IT and we love doing it. A major plc established for nearly 200 years with 90 users and a system that incorporates production and manufacturing processes provides a big…
Take one large school with 12 servers. Virtulaise the whole installation into one server with increased performance, stability and full redundancy built-in. Solutions4IT came up with a vrtx application server, application directory, security and file sharing for over 700 users. Phil Sibley from Solutions4IT says, “The vrtx servers provide fully automatic and seamless failover to…
The wait is over, it’s Solutions4IT’s Christmas Jumper Day in aid of Save The Children. The management team line up is looking ….interesting but festive! Make the world better with a sweater! please join the Solutions4IT team and get involved. If you’d like to donate £2 to support us and the charity, text TEAMPRENTIS to…
Tomorrow it’s Christmas Jumper Day please join the Solutions4IT team and get involved. It’s all in aid of Save The Children. To donate £2 to support us and the charity, text TEAMPRENTIS to 70050. Here’s our Christmas Jumper Day organiser, Angie, trying on the Solutions4IT team jumper. We’ll all be taking part and hoping to…
Solutions4IT celebrates 16 years in business today. Much has happened since we started out in 1998. From humble beginnings Mathew Horan and Andy Fletcher built a customer-centric business to provide world-class IT support for businesses across the midlands. Says Mathew, “We started the business working out of my spare bedroom but very quickly expanded into…
Another challenge for Solutions4IT’s Steve Downing is setting up a new data centre terminal infrastructure – all within a day’s work! The bespoke solution provides flexible, remote working for 130 business users spread over four separate locations. Steve certainly puts his back into it! Solutions4It installed Progress Plus, Sage and MS Office 365 with archive…
Next Friday 12th December 2014 it’s Christmas Jumper Day and we want you to join the Solutions4IT team and get involved. It’s all in aid of Save The Children. To donate £2 to support us and the charity, text TEAMPRENTIS to 70050. Here’s our office guru, PJ trying on the Solutions4IT team jumper on. We’ll…
Designing and implementing a new group user policy for 300 users may seem like a daunting task but for Solutions4IT’s Lynsey Nock it’s a regular day at the office! Splitting down and controlling staff, student and guest logins and access permissions is mission critical for the school environment. Locking down confidential information, teaching materials, HR…
The countdown is hotting up. Christmas Jumper Day is just a week away but there’s still time for you to get involved. Next Friday 12th December is the big day and it’s all in aid of Save The Children. To donate £2 to support us and the charity, text TEAMPRENTIS to 70050. Here’s our colourful…
The European Commission have paved the way for people to request that their online history be scratched out. Google’s had to react to thousands of requests from all quarters; the rich, famous, clergy, medics, media personalities – over 18,000 requests from the UK alone. Considering for a moment the way the internet works, this seems…
Christmas Jumper Day is coming infact there’s just over a week to go for you to get involved. We’ve put another of our managers into a Christmas jumper to see how they might look on the day: Join us on Friday 12th December – it’s in aid of Save The Children. To donate £2 to…
So do work and fun really go together? Are you in a working environment where having fun, a laugh and the odd joke is encouraged or frowned upon? Granted, this wasn’t our typical activity at work, we were all having our photos taken for the website, but it is a fair reflection of the environment…
Preparations are underway for Christmas Jumper Day – there’s just over a week to go for you to get involved. It’s all happening on Friday 12th December and it’s in aid of Save The Children. To donate £2 to support us and the charity, text TEAMPRENTIS to 70050. The team at Solutions4IT are all on…
We’re taking part in Christmas Jumper Day and there’s just over a week to go for you to get involved. It’s all kicking off on Friday 12th December and it’s in aid of Save The Children. To donate £2 to support us and the charity, text TEAMPRENTIS to 70050. The team at Solutions4IT are all…
It’s a common moan in offices everywhere: “Broadband’s down again!”. It’s rapidly become the single most important link in the business communication chain but in reality how much attention do we really give it? When your broadband service is interrupted it literally grinds things to a halt at work. Banking, email, documents, contracts, websites, you…
Each month every one of our customers and subscribers is entered into a free draw to win a brand new ipad. So how many hoops you have to jump through to enter? – Well not many at all, infact we got Steve from our tech support team to enter and he managed it in a…
Go on. You know you want to. Googling yourself can throw up some very interesting and in some cases, quite astonishing results. There’s so many photos and profiles online now that it’s easy to forget all about where they originated from in the first place. Facebook has millions of images, so does Twitter and there’s…
Solutions4IT delivers IT support to a wide range of businesses across the midlands. Each month every one of our customers and subscribers is entered into a free draw to win a brand new ipad. One of our recent winners was Brian Griffiths, Managing Director of FTL Foundry Equipment Limited in Willenhall. Congratulations, Brian we hope…
