The Charles IT Blog

Teams is Microsoft’s popular alternative to other leading industry standards like Slack, Zoom, and Google Hangouts. Being fully decked out with video and audio conferencing capabilities, not to mention native integration with the broader Microsoft 365 software ecosystem, it is now one of the most important collaboration tools.

Email is often derided as being an outmoded way to manage business communications. The truth is that email remains the preferred way for many people to keep in touch with businesses, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t ample scope for improvement.

As the argument in favor of cloud computing continues to strengthen in the era of remote work, the debate around private cloud security and public cloud security rages on. Few businesses have the resources to maintain their own data centers, which might seem to indicate that the private cloud is off-limits. Fortunately, that is no longer the case now that a virtual private cloud is a viable ...

Recent years have seen cloud computing diversify into several deployment models suited to different workloads and business needs. The general classifications fall either into the category of public or private cloud, though many organizations use both in the form of a hybrid cloud deployment.

Last week, the U.S. Department of Defense came out with updates to CMMC the framework. The aim of the updates, labeled "CMMC 2.0", is to provide strategic direction following an internal program assessment by the Department leaders. The revision still maintains the compliance's goal of safeguarding sensitive information, while simplifying the standards it follows.

Despite the fact that cloud computing is still a relatively young technology, it feels like a long time ago when business leaders were making the decision of whether to move to the cloud or not. However, more recent years have seen the cloud diversify to include a huge range of options tailored to the needs of virtually every business and industry vertical.

With cyberattacks costing businesses and governments billions of dollars every year, it’s never been more important to adopt a proactive approach to information security.

One of the biggest challenges in building a sufficiently robust information security program is that there are so many guidelines and frameworks to choose from. Moreover, every business has a unique set of needs and a different technology infrastructure, which also means there’s no one-size-fits-all approach.

The NIST Cybersecurity Framework provides a systematic methodology for managing risk in your organization across the entire incident lifecycle. Although the framework is not intended to replace an organization’s risk-management practices, it can help standardize your strategy by managing risk company-wide.

Organizations can no longer afford to view cybersecurity as a necessary evil and a mere cost center. Instead, they should view it as an integral component of their value propositions now that customers are increasingly wary about who they do business with. In other words, good security is good for business, not just because it helps mitigate risk, but because it opens the door to lucrative new ...