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SCW has been serving the Spokane Valley area since 1997, providing IT Support such as helpdesk support, computer support, and technical consulting to small and medium-sized businesses.

Sam is a network engineer with a broad range of experience spanning more than 35 years. He wrote is first piece of code in 1979 and has been involved with the industry ever since. For the last 20 years, he has worked for SCW Consulting where he has embraced his passion for network technology and security.

Seven great Business Communications Options

Seven great Business Communications Options

Every business has to have some form of communication so they can interact with their customers and support the transactions that they make. Today, we’ll take a look at several communications options that the modern business has to improve its organizational communications.

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A Dive Into the US/Huawei Issues

A Dive Into the US/Huawei Issues

Huawei has found itself in an... interesting spot lately. Despite being the top telecom supplier in the world and second in phone manufacturing, many countries have banned the use of the Chinese company’s networking equipment. This is primarily due to the close ties Huawei has with China’s government, and the potential spying Huawei could do.

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Hack of Capital One Exposes Information on 100,000 Customers

Hack of Capital One Exposes Information on 100,000 Customers

Capital One is one of the largest credit card issuers in the world. On July 29th 2019, Capital One made an announcement, confirming it is the victim of one of the largest data breaches in financial sector history, as a former software engineer for Amazon has been indicted on charges related to the hacking.

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You Need to Prioritize Metrics that Support Efficiency

You Need to Prioritize Metrics that Support Efficiency

Productivity is a core component of any business endeavor, but unfortunately it is often difficult to stay productive with the immense amount of distractions that intercede. In order for anyone to maintain productivity, they need tools aligned with the tasks they are presented. For the modern business, management software has connected most of a business’ core processes to streamline workflows for most people. The use of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platforms keep people in the groove longer, while also providing management metrics designed to give them an idea about how their business is functioning.

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Do Your Employees Have Any of These Six Hackable Habits?

Do Your Employees Have Any of These Six Hackable Habits?

Habits are hard to break - but there are some habits that simply have to be broken if your business is going to be secure. Many of these habits may have been developed by your employees, which means that it is important that you recognize them.

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Tip of the Week: How to Wind Down with Night Mode

Tip of the Week: How to Wind Down with Night Mode

Productivity is a huge priority in today’s business world, and with today’s technology, it can be achieved at just about any time. However, with the way our brains are wired, staring at our screens late at night isn’t great for our capacity to sleep. However, there are a few settings that you can change to reduce these impacts. Here, we’ll give a few tips to help you do so.

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A Guide to Help You Understand All the Digital Threats You Face

A Guide to Help You Understand All the Digital Threats You Face

Malware is a commonality in today’s computing environment, though businesses do everything in their power to avoid encountering it. Some people have difficulty identifying threats, which makes for a dangerous situation whenever they actually have to handle them. We’ve put together a malware guide that will help your employees identify the most common types of threats out there, as well as how to respond to them.

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With Deepfakes, Seeing Shouldn’t Be Believing

With Deepfakes, Seeing Shouldn’t Be Believing

Machine learning and artificial intelligence have enabled us to accomplish great things with the computers we have access to today. However, it is equally true that these same innovations have also produced a great number of threats. One threat that is particularly dangerous in today’s day and age is the presence, and growing prevalence, of “deepfakes” in the media.

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All You Need to Know Before Buying a Computer, Part V

All You Need to Know Before Buying a Computer, Part V

In the previous parts of this computer buying guide, we discussed how to determine the specifications for your desired PC, including CPU, RAM, storage, and display options. In this final part, we’ll cover some ideas that didn’t quite fit into the previous parts.

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All You Need to Know Before Buying a Computer, Part IV

All You Need to Know Before Buying a Computer, Part IV

Your desktop needs a monitor or a screen to plug into it, so let’s discuss some of the options and considerations you should keep in mind when purchasing a new display. Chief among these are how many monitors you’ll need, the graphics type, and the specs associated with each of the monitors.

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All You Need to Know Before Buying a Computer, Part III

All You Need to Know Before Buying a Computer, Part III

We’ve reached part three of our guide to buying a new computer. As you’re comparison shopping, you’ll probably notice that there are a few options regarding their storage. This is true of most modern gadgets, like smartphones and tablets. iPhones can come with 64 GB (gigabytes) of storage, or you can invest in a model with 128 GB. However, when selecting a computer (desktop or laptop), its memory is especially important to its performance.

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All You Need to Know About Buying a Computer, Part II

All You Need to Know About Buying a Computer, Part II

Part two of our desktop buying guide is dedicated to RAM, or random access memory. Many users find this difficult to understand, so we’ll do our best to explain it and emphasize how important it is to ensure you get the best build possible for your new computer.

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All You Need to Know Before Buying a Computer, Part I

All You Need to Know Before Buying a Computer, Part I

If you are looking to purchase a new desktop for your office or your home, you need to ask yourself several difficult questions to get the most bang for your buck. This is a five-part blog that will help you determine the right computer for the job. In this article, you’ll learn how to select the right CPU, or central processing unit.

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This Florida City Will Pay 65 Bitcoins to Get Files Back

This Florida City Will Pay 65 Bitcoins to Get Files Back

Florida’s Atlantic coast is a destination for millions of visitors each year. One visitor is costing a coastal city a pretty penny. Riviera Beach, a small city just north of West Palm Beach, has been hit with a major ransomware attack. Today, we’ll tell you how it came to be that the small beach city would make dubious history by paying what is the largest ransomware payout in the short history of these attacks.

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Cloud Resources Can Be Costly

Cloud Resources Can Be Costly

Being an authority in small business IT, we have to suggest a lot of different solutions to our clients. One thing we are sure to do is to suggest implementing cloud platforms, whether public or private, as a way to extend the reach of your business. The problem becomes that once some people are bit by the cloud bug, they go all out. Today, we’ll take a look at cloud computing’s cost, and whether or not access to cloud applications can actually be hurting your business.

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End of Life for SQL Server 2008 and 2008 R2 Coming Soon

End of Life for SQL Server 2008 and 2008 R2 Coming Soon

When was the last time you thought seriously about upgrading your business’s technology solutions--particularly its software? We know that administering patches and updates can be challenging for some businesses to maintain, but with the right support, it’s more manageable and certainly more secure. Unfortunately, after a certain period of time passes, Microsoft stops supporting certain outdated solutions, rendering them dangerous and obsolete.

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Make Sure You Are Using Supported Software

Make Sure You Are Using Supported Software

Any organization that is running unpatched versions of older Windows operating systems is playing with fire… period. Therefore, it’s your prerogative to make sure you’re adequately protecting your business’ data, and one of the most important ways you can do this is by ensuring your infrastructure is properly maintained.

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Tip of the Week: Simplify Your Day at Work

Tip of the Week: Simplify Your Day at Work

Work isn’t always great, and it can be stressful to boot. Distractions certainly don’t help, as they can complicate your schedule and get in the way of responsibilities. With the right strategies on your side, you could potentially eliminate some of this stress. Here are some of the ways you can do so.

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Is it Wrong to Purchase Access to Your Own Data?

Is it Wrong to Purchase Access to Your Own Data?

Ransomware is a contender for the favorite method of attack for hackers. If you think about it, ransomware presents a no-loss situation. Either the victim pays the ransom and the hackers laugh all the way to the bank, or they move on to the next target and give them the same ultimatum.

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Hack Enabled by NSA-Developed Tool

Hack Enabled by NSA-Developed Tool

Hackers aren’t the only ones out there developing malware tools, but sometimes, they get their hands on some of the others. This is precisely what happened when Double Pulsar, a malware that the NSA has used in the past, was paired with a Chinese hacking tool and used to attack Hong Kong and Belgium in 2016.

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