Apple has released iOS 6.1 for download to your iOS device. Release 6.1 contains the following fixes and enhancements:

This update contains improvements and bug fixes, including:
- LTE support for more carriers (complete list of supported carriers at www.apple.com/iphone/LTE/)
- Purchase movie tickets through Fandango with Siri (USA only)
- iTunes Match subscribers can now download individual songs from iCloud
- New button to reset the Advertising Identifier

For information on the security content of this update, please visit this website:

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1222

This does not seem like a large number of enhancements to be considered a .1 release so I am guessing there is more in this release than listed.

After you have installed this release please come back and leave us feedback on your experience.

So you were up late last night and was watching an infomercial that claimed it could speed up your computer with just a few clicks of your mouse? We’ll you have either just been infected with a virus or flushed $39.99 down the toilet.  http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2013/01/yes-that-pc-cleanup-app-you-saw-on-cable-tv-at-3am-is-a-scam/

I often get questions from people who have heard me talking about Microsoft Exchange, but have no idea what it is and what it will do for them and their business. So today I’m going to give you a little background on Exchange and what benefits it can give you.

Microsoft Exchange in its simplest description is a software that resides on a server that holds all your email. From a more detailed description, it does a lot more, so instead of boring you with a long drawn out technical description I want to give you a few business scenarios to help you wrap your mind around what it can do for you.

Scenario #1 – Jan, the owner of ABC Plumbing, wants to give her assistant Jason access to her calendar so he always knows where she is at and can add or adjust appointments as needed.

Solution #1 – Microsoft Exchange allows you to share your calendar with other users. These users can have read only access or the ability to view and change appointments.

Scenario #2 – Brentwood Legal Services has a conference room that the lawyers schedule on a regular basis to interview clients. Right now Sue uses a paper schedule to keep track of who has scheduled the room, but when Sue is out or cannot be reached, lawyers have to wait to schedule the room.

Solution #2 – With Microsoft Exchange you can create a shared resource account for the conference room, users can then schedule the room by adding a calendar entry.

Scenario #3 – Paula has a laptop, a desktop at the office, an iPad and an Android phone. On each of these devices she has a different list of contacts, access to some emails and has no calendar access. This makes her very inefficient, she would like to have the same contacts on each device, access to all her emails and an updated calendar.

Solution #3 – With Microsoft Exchange all of your devices stay synced, so when you make a change on one device, all devices are updated.

As you can see, Microsoft Exchange can solve many common business problems and make your employees and you more efficient. Also, you do not need expensive equipment, a network or even an office, as with Hosted Exchange you can be an office of one and take advantage of these great features.

Contact us today at 352-702-0354 and see how Microsoft Exchange can transform you business.

I received this scam message today from the “IRS” stating I qualify for a $550 refund from last year and I needed to open the attached form and complete it. Although the form and attachment do not contain any viruses or malware, completing the form will empty your bank account. The person who created the form did a very convincing job, including graphics and links directly from the IRS website, but where they got tricky is when you look at the code, the information is sent to an obscure website. If you have completed this form, your identity has been stolen. Please take all steps necessary to alert the proper agencies as to this fact. If you have received this email without filling it out, please delete it. See the full text of the email below:

Where’s My Refund opens January 30, 2013.

Due to recent tax law changes, we will open refunding season and start processing individual income tax returns on January 30.
This applies to tax returns filed on paper or electronically.

Our new system calculate your taxes of your fiscal activity from last year and you are eligible to recive a tax refund of $550.

In order to claim your refund you will need to follow the next steps:

* Download the attached form.
* Open it in a new secure window, and follow the instructions on the screen .

You will get your refund within 24 hours after we’ve received your e-filed tax return.
Generally, tax returns and return information are confidential, as required by section 6103 we may disclose your tax information to the Department of Justice for civil and criminal litigation if you are submitting invalid records .

Sincerily ,
Internal Revenue Services .

–
This message has been scanned for viruses and
dangerous content by MailScanner, and is
believed to be clean.

Take Control of your IT costs with EZCare. EZCare is just simply the easiest, safest and most cost effective solution to save your company money on IT costs and for a limited time save 50%.

That’s right, we are dropping the cost of EZCare for a limited time to help you save even more. The best part is that we offer a 100% money back guarantee on EZCare. If for any reason you are not satisfied with our EZCare service, you can cancel and receive a full refund of your current month’s subscription fee.

So how does EZCare save you money? Simple, automate the regular maintenance and protection of your computer. This automation not only decreases the chance of you getting a virus or malware on your computer, but can increase the speed of your computer by up to 20%, allowing you and your employees the ability to get your work done faster, with less headaches from your computers.

Our streamline system allows us to provide services that would normally cost you hundreds of dollars for just pennies a day. With our no risk guarantee, there is no reason to not sign up today at GetEzCare.com Today and start saving money for tomorrow.

A computer virus attacked a turbine control system at a U.S. power company last fall when a technician unknowingly inserted an infected USB computer drive into the network, keeping a plant off line for three weeks, according to a report posted on a U.S. government website. Read More…

Could your business survive a shut down of this length? If your computers and data are not protected, a disaster like this one could occur at your business and potentially put you out of business.

The best approach is multi-leveled where viruses and malware are remove as far away from your network as possible. This, along with increased network security, will help protect your business from potential dangers. Criminals are now focusing their attacks on small business and you might be next.

Call us today at 352-702-0354 and have a professional security evaluation completed today.

Did you know that all photos taken with a cellphone have the date, time and GPS coordinates embedded within the photo? Did you also know that unless you have changed your Facebook security setting, anyone can view your photos on your Facebook page? Securing your Facebook page is easy, but takes some time. Check out this step by step guide from ZDNet for easy instructions on how to keep your Facebook secure.

https://cyberexchange.isc2.org/UploadedContent/SecureYourFacebook.pdf

UPDATE: 1/22/2013. Earlier this month we reported to you that Microsoft will be retiring Small Business Server this year. We have an update on this today. As per Dell, they will no longer offer Small Business Server as of January 31, 2013. Which means that after this month we will no longer be able to purchase a server from Dell with SBS pre-loaded. The good news is that we will still be able to purchase licensing separately from other vendors throughout the year.

Original Article published 1/2/2013

In June of 2012 Microsoft announced it will be retiring Small Business Server. By retiring this line of Windows Server, Microsoft has ended any further production of newer versions of the operating system, but has not ended the support for versions still within its lifecycle.

So what does this mean to you the owner of a Small Business Server? The good news is that if you currently have a Small Business Server, support will continue to be available through the products normal lifecycle. But now for the bad news, after mid-2013 you will no longer be able to purchase a new license for Small Business Server. So once you are ready to refresh your current Small Business Server, that server operating system will no longer be available and Microsoft will be leaving you very few options:

1. Replace your existing Small Business Server with a Windows Standard file server and use a Hosted Exchange and/or Hosted SharePoint service.
2. Replace your existing Small Business Server with a Windows Standard file server and add an on-premise Exchange server.
3. Replace your server’s hardware and hope that the new hardware is compatitable with the old operating system and you do not get hacked due to a security flaw or you do not need a feature which is only available in a newer version of the operating system.

Both options 1 and 2 increase your costs, option 1 decreases your initial capital outlay, but adds the monthly cost of Hosted Exchange and/or Hosted SharePoint. This does decrease any expenses associated with software maintenance on the Exchange and SharePoint portions of the server, but this is a minimal savings.

Option 2 increases your upfront capital outlay since you will need to purchase two servers or one bigger server and use a virtual server structure to decrease hardware costs. This structure also increases initial expenses in installation labor costs as well as ongoing maintenance costs.

Option 3 increases your risk exposure to viruses and hacking plus leaves you open to possible incompatibilities with other software including line of business applications.

As you can see Microsoft has left you very little room for savings in any of these solutions. Microsoft’s goal is to move as much as possible to the cloud and this in one of the first steps they are taking to force small business into the cloud with Hosted Exchange and Hosted SharePoint.

In order to help you keep ahead of Microsoft’s push into the cloud, we are recommending that anyone with a Small Business Server evaluate their current situation to see if an early server upgrade is right for them. Normally, unless there is major unforeseen growth in organization we expect a server‘s lifecycle to be 5-7 years, but with the pending end of life of SBS, an early upgrade may be right for you.

So how do you know if an early upgrade is right for you? Let me go through a few scenarios for you:

1. You have a SBS 2003 or earlier operating system – This is a must for replacement
2. You have a SBS 2007 operating system – Depending on the age of the hardware, if the hardware is over 4 years old, an upgrade may be needed. This upgrade is very dependent on your organization.
3. You have an SBS 2011 operating system – No need to upgrade
4. Your server is over 4 years old – May be time for an upgrade.

So why should you upgrade early? Upgrading early extends the life of your organization on Small Business Server into 2019 instead of 2013-14 when you would normally refresh your server. When 2019 comes around you can then look to see where the best path for your organization leads you. There may either be new technologies to support your infrastructure or possibly Microsoft will bring back Small Business Server. If you do not upgrade your server at this time, you will be forced to take one of the options Microsoft has left for you when your server is ready to be refreshed.

If you would like help deciding whether to upgrade or stay where you are, our staff would be happy to provide you a free evaluation and consultation to walk you through the decision. You can schedule your consultation today by calling 352.702.0354 or emailing .

When is the last time you took a look at your phone bill to see if you were paying too much to your carrier? You would be surprised how many companies are paying for services and lines from their phone company which they either no longer use or never needed in the first place. On average a telephone bill audit can save you $100-200 per month, but we have saved companies over $900 a month.

Phone bills can often be very complex and difficult to understand, which leaves room for errors, excess fees and unused services. These fees and services can often double your bill. Phone companies do not intentionally overcharge their customers; they simply do not have the resources to make sure every bill is accurate. In addition to being complex, companies often have multiple bills, including cell phone, Internet, landline phone and long distance bills coming at the accounting department. The accounting department often does not have the resources or technical knowledge to make sure the bills are correct. They may not realize that a $55 per month phone line was purchased for Joe P to receive calls on for a special promotion which has been over for 3 years and Joe P has not been working there for 2 years. A simple no cost phone bill audit can sift through these massively complex pages to find possible savings that you will see month after month.

That little $55 phone line could have saved the company almost $2,000 over the three year period if it had been cancelled in a timely fashion. Start saving on your phone bill today, send us an email at [email protected] and schedule a free phone bill audit.

You may think your business is too small for cyber criminal attack, but you are wrong. Cyber criminals are now directing their efforts into attacking small businesses like yours. They are stealing things like your bank account information, so they can wipe out your account. If you are not protected by at least five layers of security, you are leaving your company and its data at risk to criminals.

Read more from The Wall Street Journal