If you are not taking advantage of social networking then you are missing out on an avenue to promote yourself and your business.

You’re probably thinking, “that’s not for me” or “who has the time?”, but it takes only a few minutes and can pay great dividends.

The major players in this space are: Twitter, MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn, and to a lesser degree, Spoke and Plaxo among others. Let’s take a quick look.

Twitter is where it’s at right now. Many people including businesses are “tweeting” which is writing short blurbs about what they are doing, seeing or thinking about. The more you use Twitter, the more followers you get and thereby spread your message, whatever it is.

MySpace and Facebook are used by many companies to promote themselves. If used properly, it can be a good tool.

LinkedIn, Plaxo and Spoke are social networking sites aimed at business people. Linkedin is looking to challenge Monster and CareerBuilder as the place to post and find jobs.

It’s a fast changing world and it’s tough sometimes to keep up.

If you would like some insight, direction or more information on any of these networking sites, drop me a line or call and I will be happy to help you get started. I can be reached at richardg@mentis-group.com or 214-393-6801

Best regards and happy Twittering!

Richard

Please visit our Xerox website to learn more about the products we offer and special pricing.

http://www.office.xerox.com/webbuilder/sites/home.cfm?RESELLER_ID=17208

We are happy to help you find the right product for your needs.

I read this article on the Times of London web site today. It was written by Nigel Kendall, Technology Editor.

Will PC worm turn nasty on April Fool’s Day?

Conficker C is poised to do something with millions of infected PCs on April 1. But no one knows exactly what.

The Conficker Internet worm could strike at infected computers around the world on April 1, a security expert warned Monday.

Conficker is a sophisticated piece of malicious computer software, or malware that installs itself on a Windows PC’s hard drive via specially written Web pages. It then conceals itself on a computer.

Graham Cluley of the British security firm Sophos confirmed that Conficker is programmed “to hunt for new instructions on April 1.”

However, he added, “This does not mean that anything is going to happen, or that the worm is actually going to do anything. Simply, it is scheduled to hunt a wider range of Web sites for instructions on that date.”

One strange thing about Conficker is that no one yet has any idea what it is programmed to do.

In February, Cluley told The Times: “It’s as if someone is assembling an army of computers around the world, but hasn’t yet decided where to point them.”

A worst-case scenario for April 1 would be for all the world’s millions of infected computers to receive simultaneous instructions to attack, or to flood the internet with spam e-mail.

Ed Gibson, Microsoft’s chief security adviser for the U.K., was reluctant to make predictions about Conficker’s behavior.

“April 1 is a classic date for anything like this to go off,” he said. “But I really would hate to say that April 1 is going to be unlike any other day.”

Mr Gibson reiterated Microsoft’s advice to consumers, that the best way to protect themselves against Conficker and any other worm or virus is to keep their system up to date. Microsoft maintains a special site that will remove infections from a suspect PC. Millions of PCs around the world are believed to be infected.

Mr Cluley of Sophos additionally suggests that internet users stick to internet pages they know and trust. “We suspect that the people seeding these viruses are monitoring search trends on Google, then hastily putting together special sites that contain clippings from legitimate sources, but also install malicious code.” He also advised internet users to look out for fake PC security scanning websites.

This is from Microsoft’s web site:

Protect yourself from the Conficker computer worm

http://www.microsoft.com/protect/computer/viruses/worms/conficker.mspx

There are 12,000 or so laptops found in US airports each week and 62,000 lost electronic devices recovered from New York’s metropolitan buses, taxis, trains, and stations each year!  The bottom line is no matter how careful you are with your laptop, mistakes occur and losing a laptop (or having one stolen) is likely to happen to you or your employees at some point in time.

In the hands of a relatively unsophisticated hacker, all of your laptop information can be siphoned off, allowing an open back door into your network. This is akin to giving a thief the key to your office and the code to deactivate the alarm. Imagine the embarrassment of having to contact all of your customers to let them know THEIR confidential information may be compromised because one of YOUR unsecured laptops is in the hands of a criminal!

Asking employees to be more careful about where they keep their laptop IS a good step in the right direction, but accidents happen and thieves are always on the prowl. That’s why it’s so important to take measures to lock down and secure any mobile devices you and your staff use to access your company’s network. Here are just a few things:

Encrypt All Information – Drive encryption software such as BitLocker (which is included in some versions of Microsoft Windows Vista) can secure all the data on your hard drive. Also, check your computer to see if it has a Trusted Platform Module (TPM) chip which is generally more secure than those without TPM.

Multi-Level Access Security – Don’t rely only on passwords to keep your laptop safe. Hackers can usually break most passwords in a few hours. We recommend adding a second way for people to prove that they are who they say they are BEFORE they are able to log in. Some people use smart cards to do this, but fingerprint pads are gaining in popularity.

Log / Back-Up Information – It’s critical to log and back-up all information on business laptops to ensure smooth operations in the event of loss or destruction. We can automate the backups so they are done ON SCHEDULE and in a way that won’t interfere with the use of the laptop.

The Right Response - What happens when an employee loses a laptop? Do you have a next step action plan in place? If not, we suggest calling us immediately to report the loss (Note: clients on our Platinum managed services plan will get after hours support for situations like this). The sooner we know, the sooner we can take preventative actions to lock that laptop out of the network. A blame culture where people are afraid to report losses is actually much worse for security.

Take the time NOW to secure your laptop and limit the damage to your business if it happens. Mentis specialize in securing business data like yours, and making sure it is available whenever you need it, so give me a call at 214-393-6801 to discuss encryption options and how to make your business network more secure.

Dear beloved clients,

We love having you as customers and quite honestly, wish we had more like you!

So instead of just wishing, we’ve decided to hold a special “refer-a-friend” Valentines Day event for the clients we love the most.

Simply refer someone to us and we’ll send you a special Valentines Day Box containing the most delicious triple fudge brownies you’ve ever tasted from Whole Foods.

Everybody Wins!

You’ll get a whole box of chewy, chocolaty, treats to share (or keep to yourself!), and we’ll give the person you refer a FREE Technology Tune Up to check for viruses and prevent other potential problems from cropping up.

All you have to do now is send me an email with your referral’s name and contact details.

We’ll have that big box of Whole Foods most delicious, mouth-watering treats sent to you the moment we get your email.

With Love,

Richard

Vice President

Mentis Group

richardg@mentis-group.com

P.S. Your referral is under no obligation to use our services. We also promise to be 100% respectful of their time and will not harass them with sales calls if they are not interested.

Mentis Group is proud to participate as an exhibitor at the North Dallas Chamber’s 6^th Annual Building Business Expo Presented by Capital One Bank on Thursday, February 12, 2009 from 11:00 a.m.  to 5:00 p.m. at the Addison Conference and Theater Center, 15650 Addison Road.  Please join us at this Free event and while you’re there stop by our Booth #29.

Mentis Group is proud to have our business partners, Microsoft and Xerox joining us in exhibiting our services.  Both Microsoft and Xerox have generously donated GREAT give-aways and door prizes for this event.  But you must come by and see us at our Booth #29 to be eligible to receive a gift and qualify for the prize(s).

The Building Business Expo showcases the products and services of more than 60 local businesses.  There will be lots of great door prizes and great networking. 

For more information or to register to attend, please see the North Dallas Chamber’s website, www.ndcc.org or give me a call at 214-393-6814.   Hope to see you there!

Best regards,

Bruce Meeks, President, bruce.meeks@mentis-group.com

Richard Galganov, Vice President, richardg@mentis-group.com

Linda Glauben, Vice President, Sale, linda_glauben@mentis-group.com

Today the country swears in its newest president. We all wish him the best for the next 4 years and hope all things are better then than they are now. We hope for a more prosperous country, a safer world and less of the schisms that separate us.

We offer, as you know, IT support and managed service to our clients; businesses. Our new president and his cabinet provide, broadly speaking, managed service to their clients; US citizens. We all put our trust that the man we chose will keep us secure and keep a watchful eye over everything, fixing things before they break, but if something unforseen happens, responding quickly.

We’ll put our trust in the new president and hope that he lives up to our expectations.

Good luck, Mr. President. We’re all praying that you do a terrific job.

Richard

Microsoft released an urgent security update today for Internet Explorer on all currently supported versions of Windows. 

If you haven’t done it yet, go to:

http://www.microsoft.com/protect/computer/updates/bulletins/200812_oob.mspx

Looking out for our clients and friends,

Richard

You may want to stop using your Internet Explorer browser — at least for the next day or so. Microsoft just announced that it is preparing an emergency patch to plug a gaping security hole that cyber criminals have been using to grab control of unsuspecting IE users’ machines.  The software giant plans to issue the remedy sometime on Wednesday.

The presidental election is over and we can now focus on other things that are important too; our businesses. Just like there is going to be changes in Washington in the new year and the need to prepare, we all have changes planned for our businesses going into the new year as well.

Are you adding or replacing employees, moving to a new location, or growing your company? Spend a little time over the next few months writing down where you are and where you would like your company to be. Look at doing things with greater efficiency. can your employees or you accomplish more with better tools?

Can your computers run faster, your server? Are you inundated with SPAM? Can you access important data from home as you would at work? When was the last time your IT department cleaned and re-imaged your PC? I could go on and on.

Ask yourself and your employees if there is something that could help them be more productive? You may be surprised at what you may hear. A new mouse or a $100 printer could make all the difference.

A new year and new goals for your business. It’s up to you to achieve them.