Cybersecurity guides
Keeping your business or town safe online, without an enterprise budget.
A Laptop Left the Building. So Did Everything On It.
A missing laptop or phone doesn't have to become a lost week, or a breach. Here's how to make sure the one that goes astray is just hardware to replace, not a crisis.
Everybody Knows the Password. That's the Problem.
Shared logins on sticky notes and in spreadsheets are how a lot of break-ins start. A password manager closes that door, and makes everyone's day a little easier too.
The Screen Says Your Files Are Locked and Someone Wants Money
Ransomware is the attack that locks up every file you have and demands payment to give it back. Here's how it gets in, what to do in the first hour, and what actually keeps it from ruining your week.
When Is a Computer Too Old to Keep Using?
A slow computer is telling you two things at once, and only one of them is about speed. How to tell which of your machines have life left and which have quietly become a risk.
How to Tell if That Email Is a Scam
Scam emails don't have typos anymore, and the logos are perfect. Here's how to actually tell the real thing from the fake, and what to do if you already clicked.
The Cybersecurity Checklist for Small Businesses and Towns
A practical checklist you can actually finish: accounts, email, devices, wifi, backups, and people, in plain language, with the highest-payoff items first.
Why Your Email Lands in Spam, and How to Fix It
When your own emails get flagged as junk, it costs you customers you never hear from. The cause is usually fixable, and mostly a one-time setup.
If You've Never Tested Your Backup, You Don't Have One
A single external drive or 'it's all in the cloud' is not a backup plan. Here is what a backup you can actually restore looks like, in plain English.
One Password Shouldn't Open Your Whole Business
When guests, staff computers, card readers, and cameras share one network, a single weak link reaches everything. Why separation matters and what it takes.
When the One Person Who Knew the System Leaves
In many small businesses and towns, one person quietly holds all the logins and know-how. When they leave, it can leave with them. How to fix that first.
Cyber Insurance for Small Towns: What Your Provider Now Expects
Insurers are raising the bar on cybersecurity for local governments. Here is what small Washington towns are now expected to have, and why.
Cybersecurity Basics Every Small Business and Town Should Have
You do not need an enterprise budget to be reasonably safe. Here are the practical safeguards that stop most common cyber incidents, in plain language.
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