Posts tagged managed hosting
What Are The Benefits Of Implementing PCI DSS
Jan 18th
With the increasing number of people now using the internet for shopping and the new high tech methods of accepting payments online and in traditional ‘brick and mortar’ stores, security has become an important issue for both businesses and consumers. The business community has recognized the need for quality security protocols and has implemented an effective security policy known as PCI Compliance. The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) is a global security standard designed to protect businesses and consumers. The purpose is to protect personal and financial information from such threats as identity theft. When implementing PCI DSS, both the business and consumer benefit.
Below is a list of the benefits to a business when they implement PCI DSS:
1. If a company becomes PCI compliant and they have a breach in security, they will not be fined. The company will be given “safe harbor” status as long as they were PCI compliant at the time the security breach occurred. If a company is sued by consumers, the court will be more lenient on the company if it was PCI compliant. That is, if the company shows they had implemented all of the proper security measures.
2. By being PCI compliant, companies will give customers peace of mind knowing they are protected when they make a purchase. By protecting their customer’s personal data, customer buying confidence will be boosted. Maintaining customer trust creates loyal customers which improves sales. Customers will feel satisfied knowing that their cardholder data is safe when transmitted and stored. As well, the reputation of the company will be solid and the reputation of the brand will remain protected.
3. Businesses will be protected when they are PCI compliant as they will be able to build and maintain a secure business network. Their systems will be less prone to a successful attack and there will be continual security checks to make sure compliancy is maintained.
Becoming PCI compliant is a relatively quick and easy process, depending on the size of the business, their level of technology, and how many threats need to be minimized once the scan has been completed. It is recommended that a business enlist the services of a professional to help them become PCI compliant. An IT security expert can thoroughly assess a business security needs and implement an effective plan that will ensure that the business remains compliant in PCI.
Any company that stores or transmits cardholder account data is a potential target of criminals which is why any merchant or service provider that processes, transmits, and stores cardholder data must be PCI DSS compliant. PCI DSS protects cardholders and minimizes the risk to your business. PCI compliancy allows a business to simplify their security requirements, policies, and plans.
Well informed consumers will only shop at PCI compliant companies. They will know how to identify a company that is PCI compliant; therefore, it makes sense to become PCI compliant. The benefits of implementing PCI DSS far outweigh the personal and financial costs if a security breach occurs.
Operating online can be a risky endeavour without extensive knowledge about Internet security. Increase your awareness regarding IT management through researching on the uses of Sharepoint hosting and managed hosting Toronto.
How to Evaluate a Managed Hosting Service Provider
Nov 25th
Many businesses use managed hosting because they don?t have the time or the manpower to manage it on their own. In other words, they do not have to worry about a lot of the grief that comes along with managing their own hosting. The truth is that they are able to let someone else worry about keeping everything up and running. However, the idea is that the managed hosting service provider will keep everything up and running the way it is supposed to. That means going on the search to find a company that will do just that.
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What to look for
When evaluating a managed hosting service provider, you have to know what to look for. Here is a list of some of the tasks that should be provided by a managed hosting service provider:
- Backup of remote data – Security monitoring – IT services – Technical assistance – Technical assistance
However, you have to make sure that the number one priority of the managed hosting service provider is the managed hosting. They have a staff that takes care of the tasks that would be taken care of in your business if you had your own managed hosting. Instead, they are an off-site service that makes the managed hosting or your business their number one priority.
How to evaluate
Once you have determined what it is they offer, you need to look up some credentials. You can do this by checking with the Better Business Bureau, certifications such as the PCI Compliance, reading online reviews, and talking to other businesses that have used them for their services.
You may also want to see if the service offers you an evaluation period. This means that you can park your website with them for a specific amount of time and try them out. During this period, you can ensure that you have 100% uptime, that all of your technical demands are addressed, and that the service is up to par. If it isn?t, there should be no obligation for you to stay with that company after the evaluation period. You should be able to freely move your website to any other managed hosting service. Just make sure you undergo the same process and that is allowing you a period to evaluate.
You also want to make sure that you don?t get too comfortable during the evaluation period. Anything that occurs that puts a sour taste in your mouth should not be acceptable. Sure, things do happen and you can evaluate the circumstances, but make sure that too many misfortunes do not happen often. That may mean that they don?t have all of their ducks in a row.
Making your decision
After you evaluate, making your decision as to whether or not a managed hosting service provider is right for you should be rather easy. Only you know what your business needs. What one business needs may not be needed by another business, so make sure you’re getting everything you need and not too many things that you don’t need, which is a problem with some providers. They provide their customers with all these great services and the customers pay for them. However, it may turn out that too much is being paid for a lot of unnecessary things. Make sure you can customize your plan. There should be options for you to choose from so that you don’t overpay.
So now you have an idea of how you can evaluate a managed hosting service provider. This is so you can make sure they are the right provider for you. If they?re not, you can just move on.
About the Author:
Leading provider of managed IT solutions offering managed hosting Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal and Quebec City. Visit us to learn more: Data Center Toronto.
Dedicated Hosting for Beginners
Nov 20th
Dedicated hosting is different from shared hosting in that it resides on a server by itself. Shared hosting means that several websites are sharing the same server, but when there is a problem with that single server, all of the websites residing on that server will fall victim to that problem. That is why more and more people are turning to dedicated hosting.
A business can purchase their own dedicated server or they can lease it. There are other options available for those who choose a dedicated server and that is to have their hosting managed. That is why dedicated hosting is frequently referred to as managed hosting. Nevertheless, dedicated hosting is more flexible than shared hosting.
Return on investment
In many ways, dedicated hosting can result in a larger return on investment. This is due to the fact that there is very little overhead involved. If a company were to have their dedicated hosting in-house, they may be facing some pretty steep costs. However, employing the hosting company to take care of all of the administrative responsibilities can prove to be quite profitable.
For those who may not have the IT staff or be able to afford a staff to take care of the server, having the hosting company take care of technical issues and routine maintenance is going to be something you might find quite handy. Basically, that allows you to concentrate on those things that are important within your business. Not that your hosting isn’t important, because it is. It’s just that your hosting won’t do you any good if you don’t do the marketing activities that are needed to draw people to your business. It also won?t do you any good if you get a reputation for not being able to handle consumer needs because you?re too busy concentrating on your hosting.
A must for your business
So if you’re not too sure about what to do as far as your Internet presence goes, dedicated hosting is a good place to start. You can get all of the assistance that you need to ensure that everything goes smoothly. This means that you don’t have to have technical expertise about data centers and you don?t have to have knowledge of a lot of the technical turns. Your hosting company will explain things to you in ways that you can understand so that you know what it is you’re getting. They will also not do anything drastic unless they let you know what it is they are doing, so you don’t have to worry about some sort of unauthorized action being carried out.
If you’re not on the Internet yet because you are not sure what it is you need to do, this is a great place to start. Once you figure out your hosting options, you can then work on getting a website built for your business. Many businesses find that they profit more on the Internet because they can reach a global audience. Reaching a global audience means global sales, if it is possible for your business. You’ll notice a considerable difference in the amount of revenue that you bring in. What’s great is that dedicated hosting does that for you.
So don’t worry if you’re a beginner or you know nothing about the world of Internet because you’ll definitely catch on. You’ll be able to learn as you go as someone else does the work. All you have to do is find a reliable company. Look at Internet reviews, talk to other businesses, and check out what businesses similar to you are using. Compare price plans and options. By doing this, you’ll find the best dedicated hosting plan for you.
About the Author:
Providing clients with solutions for business continuity services, managed hosting, managed security and disaster recovery for organizational security. Our company is PCI Compliant certified.
The Importance of Data Security
Nov 14th
Truly securing the data of your company and your customers is vital to business success. In today’s world of identity theft and data thieves, many small companies are unfortunately ill-prepared to handle the heavy weight of the responsibility they have for this data.
Most small businesses understand the importance of providing secure storage for their customers’ data. After all, they’ve seen the results of improper storage of data. When a company has to send out a letter to its customers informing them that their private information has been compromised, customers begin to think twice about doing business with that company.
How Do Most Businesses Compare? Although most small business know how important it is to securely store data, they don’t always have a good disaster recovery data storage plan in place. Some business do not understand the need for formal planning about data security. Others feel that they can protect their data with simple common sense.
Unfortunately, relying on common sense and no formal plan is a bad recipe for data storage. Storing sensitive data in a responsible, secure way requires detailed formal planning and trained professionals.
What Kind of Data Needs to Be Secure? Securing data means understand which pieces of information need to be protected and enacting proper procedures and safeguards to keep this information safe. What type of information is high priority when it comes to data security?
- Customer Information Securing the data of customers should be the number one priority for any business. Without customers, the business would fail. And without data security, the customers will take their business to a competing company. In today?s world-wide economy, customers have many choices. Securing customer data keeps customers happy.
- Product Information In many industries, protecting information about new and existing products is also a priority. Competing companies may be looking for a leg up and could find that help by using stolen data. Innovation is key to surviving in most businesses, and in order to protect its intellectual property, a company needs to pay attention to data security.
- Employee Information Most companies have detailed personal information about employees, such as Social Security Numbers, addresses, telephone numbers, and employment records. It?s vital to the success of a business to protect the interests of its employees. Employees are what make a company successful.
- Company Information It is important for many companies to protect financial information and other data about the business. If accessible to unauthorized users, this information could harm the business’s reputation or provide impetus for legal action against the company. Protecting company information is essential.
How Private Data Centers Provide Security For many companies, the solution to the challenge of data security is hiring managed services. The private data center is then responsible for providing secure storage for this important data, freeing the company to focus on other areas of business that are integral to success.
Private data centers usually have multiple layers of data security. Physically, private data center buildings usually have security guards and surveillance cameras to watch over the important data around the clock. Card key access is required for physical entry into private data centers, providing a record of who has access to sensitive information.
Many companies find that they value the peace of mind of having their data protected at a private data center. It eliminates the hassle and expense of putting proper security features in place, training existing staff, and hiring new dedicated staff. And knowing that important information is secure helps companies focus on their own products and services.
About the Author:
Managed Hosting company PCI Compliant certified. Visit us at one of our locations at: Data Centre Toronto
