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Ferrum Technology Services has been serving the Elgin area since 2007, providing IT Support such as technical helpdesk support, computer support, and consulting to small and medium-sized businesses.

How Oversharing on Social Media Can Have Unforeseen Consequences

How Oversharing on Social Media Can Have Unforeseen Consequences

Data security is an integral part of not just business operations but everyday life at this point. Most people agree that specific measures to protect data security, like verifying emails and updating antivirus software, are reasonable. However, one aspect that many people fail to consider is oversharing information on social media.

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Hacked Social Media Accounts Are Bad for Your Business

Hacked Social Media Accounts Are Bad for Your Business

Social media has become deeply ingrained in today’s culture, from business to personal connection. Businesses stake their reputation on the platforms, and individuals and families use them to connect with one another in ways they never were able to before. This is why it’s so scary to think about what would happen if an account were hacked or taken over.

Let’s look at how social media hacks are disruptive and potentially catastrophic to a business owner.

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Remember Google+? Its Successor is Shutting Down Too

Remember Google+? Its Successor is Shutting Down Too

Remember Google+? It was Google’s attempt at making a social media platform, and while it ultimately was not successful, it did have some interesting features that eventually made their way to other parts of Google’s growing list of business and enterprise services. Now, Google+’s legacy is in its final moments, as Google plans to shut down the Currents service this upcoming July.

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Can We Learn Something from Elon Musk and the Whole Twitter Thing?

Can We Learn Something from Elon Musk and the Whole Twitter Thing?

Running a business isn’t a cakewalk, no matter what it is. Sometimes, as a mental exercise, I like to try to think about some of the simplest business models in my head, and then explore just how many complications I can come up with that prove this theory.

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Breaking Down Search Engines, Part 1

Breaking Down Search Engines, Part 1

You probably use Google more often than you think, but there are, of course, other search engines out there that perform similar functions. Why, then, is Google by far the most popular one? We’ll discuss some of the pros and cons of the various other search engines, but let’s start with Google itself.

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Breaking Down Search Engines, Part 2

Breaking Down Search Engines, Part 2

We started this series on web browsers by focusing on the biggest of them all: Google. Now it’s time to look at some of the other options users have for their search engine needs. This time, we’re focusing on Bing, Microsoft’s proprietary search engine, and DuckDuckGo, a different search engine altogether.

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Don’t Let Your Guard Down on Social Media

Don’t Let Your Guard Down on Social Media

Cybersecurity has many facets, but one of the most overlooked is social media. Hackers frequently use social engineering tactics to target users through their favorite social media platforms. If you’re not observant enough, you could put your business at risk by accepting the wrong friend request or clicking the wrong link. To help you and your employees keep security high on the priority list, we have put together the following tips.

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Is Social Media Causing Productivity to Drop?

Is Social Media Causing Productivity to Drop?

Productivity plays an important role in the business environment, but no employee is productive 100 percent of the time. No matter how disciplined an employee is, they will eventually succumb to the black hole that is social media. How can you keep your employees from wasting too much time on social media while also acknowledging that they too are human beings in need of breaks every now and then? What strikes a good balance?

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4 Ways to Keep Yourself Safe on Social Media

4 Ways to Keep Yourself Safe on Social Media

It’s a well-known fact that successful businesses and influencers in any chosen industry utilize social media to an extent, whether it’s Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Tik Tok, Instagram, or otherwise. All that said, however, in this connected world, one has to be aware of how this connection can influence cybersecurity. What are some ways you can keep yourself safe while using social media for either your business or your personal brand?

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Why Online Speech Isn’t (Usually) a Free Speech Issue

Why Online Speech Isn’t (Usually) a Free Speech Issue

It is undeniable that technology has become ingrained into our workplaces, and perhaps even more so into our daily lives—particularly considering the events of the past few years. This is likely why it is so surprising when a large tech company bans a user for some activity on their platform.

With all that is happening today, this surprise has largely turned into outrage over whether or not these companies can really ban people over what they share on the platform. Let’s go over the situation to try and glean from it some answers.

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Tip of the Week: How to Make Social Media a Little Less Political

Tip of the Week: How to Make Social Media a Little Less Political

Social media platforms have proven their worth as a communication tool and advertising platform… something that many political campaigns are embracing with an election looming. As a result, many people have found their feeds cluttered with campaign ads. The thing is, the ads aren’t always welcomed on a platform that many use to keep up with friends and family—even less so if the content doesn’t align to their political views.

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The Value Social Media Has for Your Business Today

The Value Social Media Has for Your Business Today

With so many businesses experiencing drastic changes with continued social distancing recommendations and suspended operations, it is important that one of the most critical groups associated with any business remains in the loop: its clients and customers. Therefore, it makes sense to do so using a tool that is readily available (and that most people use): social media.

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Social Media Scams and Everything You Should Know

Social Media Scams and Everything You Should Know

Social media has overtaken both the professional and personal aspects of online communication and connection, and while it might provide a considerable boon for both, it increases the odds of being contacted by scams and other malicious attempts. The best way to make sure you don’t fall prey to a scam is to remain vigilant. Today we’ll discuss the various scams that are created for use with social media.

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How to Successfully Manage Your Reputation

How to Successfully Manage Your Reputation

In the business world, it’s easy to step on someone’s toes without realizing it until it’s too late. Nowhere is this more true than with anyone you provide goods or services. Managing your online reputation is especially important, as anyone could get on their social media accounts and slander your organization or write up a bad review of their experiences. We’ll show you how to mitigate the damage done.

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Tip of the Week: How to Block Annoyances from Facebook

Tip of the Week: How to Block Annoyances from Facebook

Facebook is a great tool to connect with people in both your personal and professional life, but having a business page on Facebook can attract a lot of attention--and it’s not necessarily wanted in certain cases. For example, what if someone started slinging expletives at your page without your consent? This doesn’t just hurt your feelings; it makes you look bad. This week’s tip is dedicated to blocking unwanted content on your Facebook page.

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Social Media Pros and Cons

Social Media Pros and Cons

As a technology, social media has been a revelation for individuals and businesses, alike. From a technology management perspective, it also has produced a lot of wasted man-hours over that time. Today, we will look at the pros and cons of social media for the small and medium-sized business, and how to get so the use of it is a net-positive position for your company.

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A Look at Facebook’s Ongoing Data Troubles

A Look at Facebook’s Ongoing Data Troubles

Facebook has had a lot of pressure on it over the past few years. After taking the company public in 2012, the world’s most popular social network went on to make several high-profile acquisitions (Oculus, Instagram, etc.) to solidify their position in the market. As a result the company has a lot of responsibility to protect the immense amount of data that it takes in. This has opened up the tech giant to be heavily maligned in the media over the past year.

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Technology Basics: Social Media

Technology Basics: Social Media

Social media is a big part of just about anyone’s online presence nowadays, whether it’s a personal profile or a business page filled with contact information. While the various uses for social media will differ depending on who’s actually using it, it’s not stretching the imagination to think of social media as an extension of either oneself or one’s business. With this, however, comes a need to understand the security ramifications of its reckless use, as well as how it can influence your organization’s reputation.

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The CLOUD Act Explained

The CLOUD Act Explained

Another eleventh-hour spending bill passed through the U.S. Congress and was signed into law on March 23, 2018. This time, however, there was a certain earmark that may work to erode individual privacy protection around the globe. The new law, called the Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data (or CLOUD) Act, amends the Stored Communications Act of 1986 and gives unelected American officials extensive powers over global digital privacy rights.

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Social Media is Spurring Business Growth

Social Media is Spurring Business Growth

Social media has an interesting place in the business world, sitting somewhere between incredibly helpful and downright dangerous for your organization. It’s important that you consider how your business is affected by social media so that you can both leverage it to your advantage and minimize the risks associated with it.

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