Quick Answer Cybercriminals plan around your calendar. When key staff are out, when finance teams are working short, and when employees are checking email from hotel Wi-Fi, attackers move in. Summer cybersecurity for small business is not about adding more tools. It is about closing the gaps that vacation season opens up. That means tightening Microsoft 365 access controls, training your team on travel-specific phishing, locking down public Wi-Fi behavior, and putting wire tr

Three Contractors. Three Different Spots. Same Problem. In the last few months, three different small contractors have reached out to me about CMMC. None of them were in the same place. The first one needs Level 2. They handle CUI, they have a contract that requires it, and we are deep in the work right now. They have a gap assessment from a few years ago, so I am already knocking out the quick-fix items from that list while we get the bigger pieces moving. A C3PAO firm is no

Most Small Businesses Have This Wrong Their email is in Microsoft 365. Their files are in OneDrive or SharePoint. Everything is in the cloud. So it must be backed up. That assumption is one of the biggest risks I see with Microsoft 365 backup for small business environments. And it is completely understandable. Microsoft is a trusted platform. The data is in the cloud. It feels safe. But there is a difference between availability and backup. And that difference matters a lot

HIPAA compliance for law firms The Assumption That Puts Law Firms at Risk A law firm reached out to me because they were dealing with an email spoofing problem. Unauthorized parties were sending messages that looked like they came from the firm's own domain. Clients were receiving fake emails. The firm had no idea how long it had been happening. When I got into their environment, the email issue was just the beginning. All company files lived on one staff member's computer. E

AI governance for small businesses showing Shadow AI risks and security controls A client reached out before rolling out AI. That changed everything. A client emailed me recently. Not because something broke.Not because there was a security issue. But because they are starting to use AI tools across their business and wanted to make sure they were doing it the right way. They have already been building workflows. Testing use cases. Figuring out where AI can help their team. N

Many small businesses assume Microsoft 365 is already secure. They have email. They have logins. They have access. So it must be handled. But once you start looking under the hood, that is usually not the case. Microsoft 365 is a powerful platform, but it is not secure or compliant by default. It has to be configured correctly, and what you can configure depends heavily on your licensing. This is a common issue I see with Microsoft 365 security for small business environments

A Law Firm Lost Access to Their Files Overnight. Here’s What Happened. A law firm called me this morning in a panic. A staff member had left. Their license got removed. And just like that, the entire team lost access to a shared folder they used every single day. No warning. No plan. Just gone. I spent most of the day digging into it. At first I thought it was permissions. Something simple. It wasn’t. The files were sitting in a personal Microsoft OneDrive. Not a shared syste

Microsoft 365 security for small business showing default settings are not secure or compliant It Started With One Compromised Email A defense contractor reached out to me after one of his email accounts got compromised. At first, it sounded simple. Reset the password. Secure the account. Move on. It was not simple. Five hours later, after multiple calls with his email provider's support line, the issue was resolved. The bill for that single incident came out to over one thou

Should Small Businesses Move to the Cloud "Should we just move everything to the cloud?" I get this question a lot. And I get why. The pitch sounds great. Lower hardware costs, access from anywhere, no more dealing with servers. For a small business trying to keep overhead down, it is easy to see the appeal. I just finished helping a client make exactly this move. They were running a full on-premise environment. Servers, local file storage, everything. But their specialty sof

Fall is a season of preparation. Farmers harvest their crops, families get their homes ready for colder weather, and businesses should take the time to review their IT. A yearly review is one of the best ways to avoid costly surprises, protect your data, and make sure your technology supports your goals for the year ahead. This fall, there is more urgency than usual. Windows 10 will reach End of Life on October 14, 2025, which is less than 60 days away. Apple is preparing to

The Email Spoofing Incident That Triggered a Security Overhaul Quick Answer A small law firm in Northern Virginia thought their email was secure because they had Microsoft 365, two-factor authentication, and an SPF record. It was not. Their domain was being spoofed and clients were receiving fake messages that looked like they came from the firm. The fix was not buying new tools. It was turning on the ones they already had. Microsoft 365 email security for law firms requires

A bold digital graphic with a blue background and network-themed design featuring the SNL Tech Services logo and reading “Small Businesses Should Move Away from SSL VPN” to emphasize modern cybersecurity awareness. If your business is still using SSL VPN for remote or field access, it might be time to take a closer look at your setup. While SSL VPN once made remote work easier, it is no longer the safest or most reliable choice. Cybersecurity threats have evolved, and small b

Cover image for a blog post titled "The Case of the Missing Files" by SNL Tech Services. Highlights a real-world law firm scenario involving identity confusion, OneDrive sync problems, and NAS file access issues, with a modern office background and SNL branding. When I first met with this small law firm, they thought their biggest problem was spotty internet. But after reviewing their workstations, it became clear that the real problem was a tangled web of mismatched accounts

Outdated hardware on the left and modern business tech on the right — showing the real difference an upgrade can make in speed, reliability, and security. Boost performance, security, and reliability by replacing outdated equipment. We have all seen it. That one office computer that takes five minutes to boot up. The laptop that freezes during video calls. The desktop that groans under the weight of too many browser tabs. For many small businesses, replacing hardware feels li

Most small businesses using Microsoft 365 do not realize their accounts are open to the world by default. In this post, I share a real-world example of how I helped a client recover from an email breach, then took their security further with country-based restrictions, passkeys, and Microsoft Defender for Business. Learn how to protect your accounts and keep your data safe.

Not long ago, I was on the phone with my mom when the topic of internet came up. My parents rent a seasonal camper spot at a campground, and they mentioned how frustrating the internet has been. The campground provides free Wi-Fi, but they do not use it. They know better. My parents have heard me talk about network security for years. They understand that public Wi-Fi can be risky, especially when it is unsecured and shared with dozens of other campers. They know it can open

Summer is just around the corner, and with it comes the season for travel. Whether it is a long weekend at a family camp or a cross-country adventure, many of us still need to stay connected to work. For some, that might mean answering emails or hopping on a Zoom call. For us, it means supporting clients, staying on top of projects, and managing everything remotely without missing a beat. This summer, my wife and I are taking a month and a half to travel through New England.

There is something I see far too often. A small business is running smoothly for years. Nothing has ever really gone wrong. There is no in-house IT person, just someone who set things up a while ago. The owner knows there are accounts and systems out there, but everything seems to be working fine, so it stays on the back burner. Until one day, it is not fine anymore. A Real Story From the Field Someone reached out to me after a week like that. They were not a client of mine.

A Password Should Not Be the Reason Your Business Gets Hacked A few weeks ago, I got a call from a small business owner. It had been a long day for them. Their clients were receiving strange file-sharing links from what appeared to be company email addresses. These looked like Dropbox or OneDrive files, but something was off. As it turned out, those emails were not legitimate. Someone had broken into one of their employee’s Microsoft 365 accounts. And yes, the business had al

It all started with a text. “Hey, our barn cameras are acting up again. Some are out completely, and the system keeps crashing. I cannot see anything when I am on the road. Can you help?” This client boards horses, travels up and down the East Coast for competitions, and has a few rescues of her own. Security is a must, especially when she is away from home. The barn camera system was supposed to give her peace of mind. Instead, it became another source of stress. Cameras gli