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Cloud Telephony - Now's the Time

The article Funny Memes or Phishing, Identity Theft and Exploitation? was published online by TK Business Magazine, Topeka, on April 30, 2020.

We have all noticed a surge in funny Facebook memes and games while sheltering in place during the COVID-19 pandemic. They are so clever and ridiculously tempting to click-and-share or click-and-play along. But here is the rub. There is an increased likelihood that clicking, playing, and entering information really just opens the door wide open for cyber predators to get your information. Read the full article.

Cybercrime is everywhere. We know it and you know it, but deep down, many of us still think we’re either too small or unimportant to be a target. Think again. You were never safe from cyber criminals, but when the new year rolled into March and COVID-19 became the only news, your small business moved to the front of the cyber criminal’s hack-line.

Steve Riat, Director of Sales at Nex-Tech, leads B2B revenue streams and market initiatives. He has been a featured speaker by Intel, Microsoft and SonicWALL for his unique ability to integrate business and technology. Steve has been involved with peer and mentoring programs for over 15 years and currently leads two national Technology Peer Groups. An entertaining and motivating speaker, Steve speaks and facilitates seminars on technology, business growth and culture.

Olga Detrixhe: Steve, tell us a little bit more about your role at Nex-Tech. What do you do day-to-day?  

1. Chief of Good Listening, Lilly the Basset Hound, is attending. Meet her in Dustin’s Schlaefli’s tell-all marketing chat room and put her knowledge to the test.
2. It is easier to look like you’re working if you are attending Tech Edge. Mostly, because you will be. These sessions are guaranteed to up your game.
3. You want to learn how to use your surveillance camera to watch baby owls in your yard. Check out Nate’s sessions or ask Shannon—he is doing exactly that.
4. You want to win $100. Good news—you can. There is a chance in every single session!
5. You were going to run a marathon but they changed the date. You can tune in and still run in circles—cameras are off and we will not judge.
6. You just watched us go back to outer space. Now you want crush your workspace. No problem. Keep calm and get your Teams on.
7. You are feeling grumpy and dumpy because that epic vacation just got cancelled. Instead, get your tickets out and board the "Leader-Ship." Eric Townsend will not take you to Maui, but he’ll be sure to stop at Resiliencecity, Home Officeston and Teamsville.
8. Howling at the moon is hard to do during the day. But if you are feeling a little stir-crazy, make new friends like Mike Pollock, our COO, and Allan Reiter, our Net Ops guru. They will be in the tech chat room. And it is not just for techies.
9. Your cat is looking at you like you got fired. Why else would you be home so much? Well, you show her. You are spending ALL morning getting smarter. For free!
10. Tech Edge 2020—more fun than email, spreadsheets, and any report you will ever do!

For most of us, these words still seem to sound like a Tom Clancy novel, but the cybercrime landscape is rapidly making them a reality, with more examples from our direct environment added to the storybook every week. 

I recently attended an IT conference, and I am sad to say this was the first of its kind for me. With the reality that Nex-Tech has been in the “Technology” business, I realized I was not where I needed to be with understanding the vital needed of advanced IT support and cybersecurity in today’s business. To be fair, I have had the luxury of leaning on our talented staff and our Chief Operating Officer, Mike Pollock, to understand how this is important to our company as well as our customers. Once immersed in the world of IT, I learned that they speak a different language than I had learned in the traditional telecommunications world. I found myself taking a lot of notes and then following that up with a lot of questions to my team.