Shoal IT Solutions
Managed IT Services London
We hope you are all staying safe and well and looking forward to the Jubilee long weekend. The bunting is up and we’re hoping the weather plays ball so everyone can enjoy some much-needed downtime as local and global events remain challenging. This month we continue our focus on cyber security and the importance of …
We have always had a strong focus on cyber security, however, recently we have had to be even more obsessed given the current risk intensity. Hence this month’s blog (unapologetically) focuses again on cyber security along with some practical help for your day-to-day IT needs. Staying safe The NCSC has continued to provide various alerts …
The situation in Ukraine has seen an escalation of the already prevalent cyber threats, so this month’s newsletter focuses on cyber security. Take the advice The NCSC was launched by the UK government in 2016 to provide advice and practical guidance on cyber security for both home and office. It sends out regular updates …
With the last of the pandemic restrictions lifted here in the UK, more and more people are heading back into their offices – even if not full time. Sadly, at the moment, there is a need for a different kind of vigilance with the deteriorating situation in Ukraine providing the backdrop for a potential increase …
With the Government’s Covid Plan B restrictions now ended, we are starting to see greater numbers of people returning to the office full time and, others as hybrid workers. Wherever you are located, your working day is underpinned by your IT infrastructure. Over the pandemic, we focused on practical solutions to get you online (and …
2022 has arrived after a more difficult than expected omicron-impacted festive season. We hope that you did manage to spend some time with your loved ones and are feeling ready for the new year. Two years into the pandemic we thought it might be good to reflect on the shifts in our working lives and …
2021 is rushing by with December almost here and, after last year, we’re all looking forward to a greater sense of normality around our festive celebrations. With our working habits now a mixture of WFH and office-based, some of our lockdown habits, such as virtual meetings, are not going away given both the efficiency and …
Our previous newsletters have covered a host of topics around your IT needs, especially focusing on cyber security, equipment and business continuity. Recently, we have all seen inflationary pressures returning, increasing costs and implying that the Bank of England might well raise interest rates in the not too distant future. None of us can predict …
As we wave goodbye to summer, we are hopefully getting back into our work routines, albeit that hybrid working be making things a little different for many. As we approach the last few months of 2021, we have focused this month’s newsletter on two of the key lessons learned over the pandemic; maintaining cyber security …
Many of you will be returning from your summer holiday, refreshed and ready to tackle work again. The last 18 months forced huge work changes upon all of us and, whilst some will return to the office full-time, many will be working under the new “hybrid” model between home and office. In previous newsletters we …
The football may have ended up going to Rome rather than home (congratulations England anyway for getting to the final), but Lewis Hamilton did at least win at Silverstone and we have more summer sport to look forward to with the Tokyo Olympics and plenty of cricket. With holiday season here, many of you will …
Although “freedom day” has been pushed back, people do seem to be getting out and about more and we hope the tips in last month’s newsletter have been helping you to remain securely connected whilst venturing away from home. In the last few weeks, the press has been filled with ransomware stories following the Colonial …
The last twelve months have been quite a year but, thankfully, we continue to see the lockdown restrictions being eased and are starting to get out and about more. Many of you will have spent at least a bit more time back in the office but it seems increasingly likely that even when all restrictions …
As lockdown continues to ease, some of you might have ventured back into the office for the first time in a while and, whilst being back at your desk might be more common for some, many businesses, large and small, have been looking at how to better use their office space in the new “hybrid” …
As we continue the easing process out of lockdown, many will be anticipating their increasing mobility in the coming months. For some, a return to office life will be welcomed but for many, “blended working” looks set to be the future with many companies planning for a combination of home and office working. In previous …
We now have a timeline for the way out of lockdown, however, it seems likely that, even when a return to the office does become feasible, our working practices will have changed forever. Going into lockdown resulted in a rushed transition for many, and, now is a great time to reflect on how those “emergency” …
2021 looks like it is set to be a year of two halves – we remain in lockdown for the first, however, the second should hopefully see freedoms restored, a welcome return to seeing friends and family and maybe even returning to the office! For this edition, we thought we would take a look at …
Wow what a year that was… most people will understandably be delighted to say “goodbye 2020, hello 2021”. Our thoughts are of course with all those who have lost a loved one or suffered difficulties during this period, but with the vaccine now being rolled out, we hope 2021 will be much kinder to everyone …
In this edition, we’re looking at your Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery (BCDR) plan. Being able to quickly access your data when something has gone wrong is crucial to your business’s ability to carry on functioning. Furthermore, data loss can be expensive, interrupting current projects and stopping you from starting new ones as well as …
To add to our previous tech tips on how to avoid security breaches, we are now focusing on the importance of backing up your data. I am sure many of you have lost a device and with it some treasured photos, however for a business, it’s even more critical to ensure your data is safely …
Following last month’s Phishing blog and given that cyber security is a key area of focus for us here at Shoal, this month we are looking at Password Management. You may already be familiar with the need for a “strong” password, however, with the multitude of systems needing passwords, it’s a challenge to remember them …
This month we wanted to highlight cyber security as the UK government’s National Centre for Cyber Security (NCSC) has been actively reporting the increase in hacking attempts over lockdown, including phishing and spearphishing, during lockdown. For example, in their Weekly Threat Report from the 5th June, they included a focus on “Remote workers targeted by Office …
Some of you will be back in the office, at least partially, however many look set to be WFH well into 2021. To add to the good working posture tips from last month’s post, this month we are focusing on connectivity with as much stability and security as possible for your current working lives. Whether …
Whilst lockdown is starting to ease, many of you will be continuing to work from home for the foreseeable future, using a laptop instead of your office desktop computer. Laptops allow us to work more flexibly, however, those features that make them portable also make it difficult for you to adopt the correct posture. We …
