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4 Non-negotiable Things To Look For When Choosing Hospitality It Solution Providers

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Does your business specialize in the hospitality field? Then, unlike all of the other industries, your IT needs would be completely different. In the present-day of a highly competitive environment, survival becomes difficult without a proper IT system and its management in place. Often business owners hold the assumption that they can manage the complete IT related tasks and operations on their own, but in the long run, this decision becomes nerve-wracking.

One of the best ways to get your IT solutions from one place and manage it effectively is by taking advantage of the impeccable wide-range of services provided by an IT solution provider. Since you belong in the hospitality industry, you need to opt for the providers who have years of experience in providing the latest services to your competitors.

Years of Experience

If you’re planning to hire IT consultants who have established their business just recently, it is recommended not to do so. Without a doubt, if you go for a start-up or one who is just entering the field, it will be cheaper but, you might end up compromising the skill set required to manage the IT system of your well-established hospitality company. By choosing a completely new IT consultant, one runs the risk of using outdated technologies which ends up wasting both time and money. Therefore, never negotiate on the experience of the IT consultant while searching for the best one.

Pedigree

The other factor that needs to be taken into consideration is whether or not; the IT solution provider is capable of matching the pace with which the industry and technology are evolving. An excellent IT consultant service providing company like Oram Boston will always be willing to offer you the latest technological innovations which are trending in the market. So, how do you know about the Pedigree of the company? Ask the company about their use of technology and understand their approach towards using the latest innovations. These questions will help you in determining how keen the IT consultant company is, for providing the most recent IT solution.

Reputation

If you have not checked what other customers have to say about the potential IT consultant service, then you have missed the most important parameters. The reviews and testimonials posted by the customer on different websites present the real picture of the company. You can also connect with current customers of the potential IT consultant service provider before making your final decision. For doing so, you need to dig deep into the background of the company, know their experience, ratings and reviews, successful projects, achievements, specialization, and quality of service.

Price

Businesses always look outward for ways to shortcut minimize the expenses in operational costs. But, while choosing an IT consultant for your hospitality business, you’ll have to adopt a different approach. At the same time, this also doesn’t mean that you go for the provider that charges higher rates and you end up burning a hole in your pocket. Analyze the investment of money versus the service offered. In the initial days, you might feel that it’s just a waste of time and money but with time, you will see the results and then your opinion will change.

IT services are based on the type of consultant you opt for availing the services for your business. Therefore, always make sure you analyze and research the market to look for the potential IT consultant prior to making your final decision. At Oram, our team helps you streamline your technology systems to help your business grow by leaps and bounds.

Scam of the Week: Watch Out for Fake Video Scams

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Heads up, they’re back at it! The bad guys are using social media messaging platforms and emails to send dangerous phishing links that are disguised as a link to a video. The scammers provoke you into clicking by asking “Is this you in the video???”. Don’t fall for this! They are counting on an impulsive emotional reaction. It’s important to note that these attacks almost never actually involve a video; they’re only creating a reason for you to click the malicious link.

Be wary of these types of messages and any unexpected links, even if it appears to be from someone you know. Cybercriminals often hack social media accounts so they can send these same messages to everyone connected to the stolen account.

Always remember: Never click on a link that you weren’t expecting. Even if the message appears to be from someone you know, pick up the phone to verify.


Stop, Look, and Think. Don’t be fooled.

The Necessity of Dark Web Monitoring

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Protect your identity and business with a consistent watchdog service

We’ve all read about the constant barrage of cyberattacks on businesses and the nightmare that comes from having your personal identity stolen. There are ways to reduce the odds that your business will suffer such an attack or that your personal information will be hacked. One of the best methods for protecting both your business and your identity as well as that of your family is consistent monitoring of the Dark Web.

What Is the Dark Web?

The Dark Web is just what it sounds like. It’s the shady side of the internet. The Dark Web lays in a sub layer of the internet known at the “Deep Web.” This is a place hidden from conventional search engines where criminals often roam searching for their next victim.

Believe it or not, common search engines including Google, Bing, and Yahoo simply scratch the surface of what is actually available online. Such search engines hunt just .04 percent of the indexed internet. The other 99.96 percent of the web consists of databases, private academic and government networks, and the Dark Web, according to ID Agent, which provides comprehensive threat intelligence and identity monitoring solutions for both individuals and businesses through ORAM Corporate Advisors.

What Threat Does the Dark Web Pose?

Not only is the Dark Web a place that threatens your personal identity but it can endanger your business as well. This is a place where the signature pieces of your personal identity (name, date of birth, stolen passwords, and even social security numbers) can be sold daily to the highest bidder. Everything from your credentials such as email logins, passwords, and usernames can be found there.

With such personal information, criminals can hack your email, your bank accounts, and more. They can open new credit card accounts in your name without your knowledge and rack up untold sums of debt before you’re even aware there’s a problem. The threat of personal identity theft can extend beyond you as well to other family members such as your spouse, your children, and your parents.

The loss of such personal information can be devastating to your business, too. Critical business information such as business applications, email, and other online services can be penetrated with your personal information. Logins and passwords can be changed, business information can be accessed and stolen, and your organization can be brought to a complete halt with the personally identifiable information (PII) bad actors are hocking on the Dark Web. Read the ORAM blog “The Dark Web: What It Is, How It Impacts Your Organization, and Ways to Protect Your Business” for more detailed information about the severity of the threat your business faces as a result of the Dark Web.

Protecting Yourself, Your Family, and Your Business

The most effective way of protecting your PII, your family members’ PII, and your business is through Dark Web monitoring. ORAM uses SpotLight ID, which employs Dark Web ID, to monitor your identity and that of your covered family members. Through leveraging Dark Web ID, ORAM focuses on the cyber threats specific to you and the environment you work in. Our proprietary software continuously monitors the Dark Web and the digital criminal underground to determine if our clients’ credentials have been exposed.

With SpotLight ID, ORAM searches for your personal information on the Dark Web. If found, your data is harvested to protect it from typical hacker sites such as Pastebin. Many such sites frequented by cybercriminals require a membership and credibility to enter. Our monitoring system allows us access to search more than 500 internet relay chatroom (IRC) channels, 600,000 private websites, and 600 Twitter feeds utilized by bad actors.

Furthermore, SpotLight ID executes 10,000 queries daily to help monitor and protect your identity and those of the people you love. We also monitor and source information from hidden theft forums, peer-to-peer file sharing programs and networks, and social media. We can even find compromised data harvested through botnets and command and control (C2) servers.

Be On Alert

If your information is identified on the Dark Web, we notify you immediately. This allows you the opportunity to change your logins and passwords before cybercriminals can take advantage of the information they have. This also gives you time to consult with your business’s internal or external IT team as soon as possible to determine if a data breach or cyber incident has occurred using your credentials. Such monitoring and notification can buy your business the time it needs to change your username, login, and password before cybercriminals can strike against it.

In addition to monitoring the Dark Web for your PII, ORAM will alert you if someone actively targets you or your covered family members’ social media profiles. You’ll also receive instant updates, alerts, and access to your credit from all three major credit bureaus if something changes with your credit or that of your covered family members.

Monitoring of the Dark Web also gives you peace of mind that your identity and that of family is covered. With a team of U.S.-based Certified Identity Restoration Specialists, ORAM will work to completely restore your identity should the worst happen, even if the issue began before you enrolled for coverage. You can take even more comfort in knowing that with SpotLight ID, you have up to $1 million in identity insurance to cover related restoration expenses if needed.

If you are interested in learning more about SpotLight ID or registering in one of our affordable and flexible plans, contact ORAM Corporate Advisors online now or call us at (617) 933-5060. The cybersecurity experts at ORAM are here to protect you, your family, and your business from the threat of cybercrime.

Scam of the Week: Phishing for Instagram Passwords

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If you’re one of Instagram’s one billion account holders, then stay on high alert for the latest phishing scam targeted towards the social media platform’s users.

The bad guys start the attack by sending an email claiming that someone has attempted to log in to your account. The email is convincing with its simple message and familiar design–complete with an Instagram logo and icon. The email message includes a “sign in” link and a “secure code” to confirm your identity.

When you click the sign in link, you’re brought to a completely fake, but extremely realistic-looking Instagram login page. The web address of the login page is the only noticeable red flag. The web address does not include “instagram.com”, and the URL ends with “.CF” instead.

Remember the following to avoid scams like this:

  • Whenever you’re providing login credentials, be certain you’re on the real login page.
  • Pay attention to the web address and be sure the proper domain is included in the URL.
  • When you get an email from an online service that you use, always log in to your account through your browser to check the validity of the message–not through links in the email.


Stop, Look, and Think. Don’t be fooled.

Scam of the Week: Watch Out for Phishing in your Google Calendar

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Beware! If you use Gmail for your business or personal email, you could be at risk. One of the latest cyber scams going around takes advantage of the popular Google Calendar service by adding fake events to unsuspecting victims’ calendars.

When they create the calendar event, they add a short event description complete with a dangerous phishing link. Typically, the event claims that “You’ve won prize money”, or that “There’s a money transfer in your name”. The description tells you to click the link and follow the directions to claim your money.
Once invited, you’re exposed to the dangerous event description in multiple ways: You’ll receive a notification in your inbox and the event will automatically show up on your calendar.

Don’t fall for it! If you click the link in the event description, you’re brought to a dangerous webpage and instructed to enter your personal information so the bad guys can steal it.

Remember the following to avoid falling for scams like this:

  • Never click on links in emails or in calendar notifications that you weren’t expecting. Even if it appears to be from someone you know, it’s best to pick up the phone and call them to be sure it’s legitimate.
  • Always hover over links to see where they’re taking you before clicking. The link may take you to a different address from the URL that is shown.
  • By default, Google Calendar events are automatically added to your calendar, even if you haven’t responded. You can turn this setting off by opening your Google Calendar settings from a desktop browser.


Stop, Look, and Think. Don’t be fooled.

Scam of the Week: Confirm Your Unsubscribe Request? Not So Fast

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If you’re subscribed to a large number of digital mailing lists, your inbox can quickly become unmanageable and the word “unsubscribe” becomes your new best friend. But not so fast!

Recently, there’s been an uptick in a phishing scam where the bad guys send emails appearing to be a confirmation of your request to unsubscribe from a mailing list. The subject lines of these emails are usually similar to: “Confirm your unsubscribe request,” or “Client #980920318 To_STOP_Receiving These Emails From Us Hit reply And Let Us Know”.

Should you fall for this trick and click the “unsubscribe” email link, it will trigger a “new email” window to appear in your mail client. This new email will be addressed to 15-20 recipients and will contain “Unsubscribe” in the subject line. Don’t click “Send” on that email!

The 15-20 recipients of this email are actually accounts set up for spamming purposes. If you send this email, the spammers will know your email address is a “live one” and they’ll add it to their list. Such lists can be used in other, more lucrative scams.

Follow these tips to avoid scams like this one:

  • The bad guys expect you to click and respond without thinking. STAY ALERT! Don’t be a victim.
  • NEVER click on links in emails that you weren’t expecting, or that are generally vague and lacking information.
  • Never reply to people you don’t know, or weren’t expecting an email from. Even if it appears to be from someone you know, it’s best to pick up the phone and call them to be sure.


Stop, Look, and Think. Don’t be fooled.