Can Virtualization, Cloud and Mobility Adoption Boost Disaster Preparedness for SMBs?

Our latest Symantec 2012 SMB Disaster Preparedness Survey found that more and more small and medium size businesses (SMBs) are planning and implementing virtualization, cloud computing and mobility, a strategic IT trend typically seen with larger enterprise businesses. We see companies that can find a way to effectively incorporate these technologies enjoy a competitive advantage in a fast-paced, global marketplace. But we’re also seeing that these new strategic technology investments (virtualization, cloud and mobility) can also align to a disaster preparedness strategy, especially when considered and analyzed in the planning process.

So my question to you is – do you feel confident with your organization’s disaster preparedness plan?  If not, regardless of whether you have a plan this year to implement a...

Careless employees continue to cost companies millions. That’s one of the key takeaways from the 2011 Cost of a Data Breach Study released last month by Symantec and the Ponemon Institute, which provides valuable insight into the data breaches that occurred during the past year.

Negligent insiders were the top source of data breaches in 2011, causing 39 percent of all breaches in the study.  Just behind negligence, malicious attacks caused 37 percent of all breaches and were the most expensive type of breach, averaging $222 per lost record.

Overall, the average organizational cost of a data breach was $5.5 million last year, and the cost per lost or stolen record was $194. It’s important to remember that although there was a reported decrease in data breach costs, the financial consequences of data breaches are still very significant, especially for an SMB.

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Save the Date for our Twitter Chat (hashtag #SMBChat)

Mobile devices have the potential to both supercharge and invade SMBs.  Employees use these devices to surf the Web, check emails, access business critical applications and to be more productive no matter their location. But this enhanced productivity comes with risks – lost or stolen devices and mobile malware are significant concerns for small businesses. 

Join Symantec’s SMB mobility experts and small business expert Anita Campbell of Small Business Trends on Wednesday, May 2 at 4:00 p.m. PT / 7:00 p.m. ET to chat about how SMBs can mitigate risks while leveraging mobile technologies.     

SMBs must protect their business information regardless of where it resides – whether on the road or in the office.  SMBs need to take steps to...

Feeling the pinch? These days, all of us are looking for ways to trim budgets and our operating expenses. After all, who doesn’t like to save money? One pain point that consumers, enterprises and small businesses share is their energy consumption.  But it’s not just the heat of summer or the cold of winter that ratchets up the kilowatts. If you are an SMB, your IT systems have a significant impact on your energy consumption. The good news is that there are things small businesses can do to make their energy bill more bearable year-round. 

Most SMBs don’t realize just how big of a footprint their IT equipment has on the environment and how much they could save by reducing it. You can make laudable changes without compromising the quality and performance of your equipment or processes. In fact, it’s not hard to have the best of both worlds: high product performance and low energy use.

Below are some tips for fostering energy-efficient...