Changing laws and privacy in the EU  At the end of last month on 25 May, a new digital privacy regulation was introduced across the European Union known as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The GDPR centralises previously separate privacy legislation across the EU, into one legally binding regulation designed to protect the privacy of EU residents. It regulates how businesses process and handle data, and makes them more accountable for data breaches. Following this new regulation, companies now must show where a customer’s data is going, how it will be protected and what it will be used for. Customer data includes their email and contact details, IP address, social media profiles and interests. The GDPR formalises customer’s rights and ensures they have the right to be informed about their personal data, the right of access to their personal information, the right of rectification to update information, the right of erasure so they can erase personal data, and the right to object or unsubscribe from communications at any time. Why this matters for us in New Zealand  The GDPR has ripple effects beyond Europe, as it is binding on anyone processing EU resident’s personal data. The regulation applies to anyone selling goods or services, including free services such as a website or email newsletter, to EU citizens, or storing data of EU citizens. If a New Zealand website affects EU citizens, they must comply to the regulation, for instance. Failing to comply to GDPR could lead to costly fines and see businesses paying up to 20 million euros or 4% of their global turnover – whichever is higher. This regulation also indicates a shift in mentality around privacy and customer rights. New Zealand privacy laws, which have been found ‘adequate’ by the EU, are currently being reformed to make them more robust and better protect customers. The best thing any business can do in New Zealand is to take practical steps to improve their privacy processes. What you can do today  Under the GDPR businesses can collect personal data if someone consents to it, if it’s necessary for them to fulfill a contract, if the business has a legal obligation to do so, and if the company or organisation has a legitimate interest that doesn’t override the rights or freedoms of the person. Following the establishment of this regulation, the first steps any business should take is to run an audit of data collection and processes. From here, they can run a ‘re-permission’ email campaign for current EU-based email contacts, ensure an ‘opt-in’ button is activated for email newsletters or subscription services, and ensure the cookies are also on opt-in before they’re used for new contacts. More broadly, any business will benefit from doing a rundown of all data they collect and what is done with it, in order to improve data security and lead generation practices. Businesses should be thinking about how they can incorporate privacy into the development of new products or key decisions, and ensure they

10 Ways to Secure your WordPress Site from Hackers Cybercrime is on the rise and over the last 5 years, we have seen an exponential rise in the number of cyberattacks targeting New Zealand. Last year alone we saw Kiwis lose more than $177 million to cybercrime with over 1 million people being directly affected. But what can you do, as a small business owner, your days are hectic, we get it. Its hard to stay on top of security and all your day to day operations. The thing is, if you’re not maintaining your website backups and skipping out on important things like updates, you are chancing fate. It’s just not worth it. That’s why we have created this simple checklist for NZ website owners, designed to keep your data safe and your downtime to a minimum. Update your CMS as soon as the updates available: Many content management system (CMS) are open-source platforms (like WordPress). Open-source means everyone has access to the coding. This means that when WordPress updates their core files, all the exploitable vulnerabilities that were corrected with that update are now known to hackers around the world. Hackers then use SQL & malware injection bots to go forth and infect sites that aren’t being updated on a regular basis. Moral of the story when you see “ An updated version of WordPress is available” Read it as “ You are vulnerable to cybercrime every second you delay this update (Oh, and there are some new features too)” Update and Delete Plugins: For the same reasons outlined above, we recommend that you always update plugins and uninstall plugins you don’t use. Old plugins provide hackers with a backdoor to your site. Also, avoid ever installing plugins that have not recently been updated by the developer. Your IT company should be able to make recommendations in this regard if you are unsure. Install a reliable security plugin: If you use WordPress, ask your host, web developer or IT company to recommend security plugins and software for keeping your site secure. Most of these plugins offer a free version and a paid premium upgrade which has more features. We recommend Wordfence or Sucuri. Backups, Backups, Backups: You cant prevent against every kind of attack but you can prevent losing all of your data by purchasing a backup service, such as BackupBuddy, VaultPress or UpDraftPlus, or hosting your website with a provider that offers daily backups. If your site cannot be restored after a hack, at least you’ll have all of your content and data, which you can move to a new site. This is a massive saving. If you do nothing else on this list ensure you backup your website today. Password Management: Your users are your weakest link. User education will help all members of your team know what not to click and what to look out for. Use simple passwords you won’t forget BUT use them with MULTI-FACTOR authentication. Using the same complex password for every

“How much will VoIP cost my business?”   This is one of the first questions many prospective clients want to know when they call our company. Although this is a very difficult question to answer because there are so many considerations, I will try to do my best here to explain some general pricing guidelines. The purchase of a VoIP Phone is much like the purchase of a vehicle or other mission-critical equipment. With so many options available, price ranges can vary drastically. Just as a Toyota Hilux can start around 30k with just a basic package, it can quickly cost over 50k once you add your essential items such as 4-wheel drive, 4 doors vs two, and a steel top canopy then jump up to 60k+ when you upgrade to all-leather interior, chrome finishes, alloy wheels, dual exhaust and built-in GPS system etc, etc… These same principles typically apply to the purchase of a VoIP phone system. Understanding that you are going to have to use your VoIP Phone System every day makes picking the right system with the right features critical to ensure maximum performance, minimum maintenance and above all ease of use. For this reason, most of the businesses we deal with elect to get the VoIP Phone system that will offer them the best performance in the long run. Unfortunately, there are some businesses which only focus on the initial costs with the goal of finding the “cheapest” hardware and installation services available. This approach sacrifices performance, reliability, and peace of mind, which inevitably leads to regret and seeking an alternative solution. If you continue to read below, you will begin to understand the wider considerations that need to be made when choosing your VoIP Phone System. Now that you hopefully understand the vehicle analogy, I will list some of the most common “add-ons” that can be found in the purchase of a VoIP Phone System. Note: While it is standard practice to sell VoIP Phone Systems with some of the ‘add-ons’ seen below as package deals it’s important to realize that no company should sell you a package without first evaluating your current infrastructure and goals. ( See 7 Questions to Ask A VoIP Sales Person Before You Buy – for more on this) We do this through a comprehensive free assessment. Common ‘add-ons’: 1. Decision for a Cloud or On-Premise VoIP Phone System 2. Installation / Set-Up Costs 3. Types of Desk Phones 4. Software Phones (Softphones/ Smart Phone Apps) 5. Wireless or Wired Headsets 6. Secure Remote Extensions 7. High-Quality Broadband Connection 8. VoIP Grade Broadband Router 9. VoIP Grade Network Switch 10. VoIP Grade Wireless Access Points 11. Data Cabling 12. Reporting Features 13. Software Integrations As you can see, there are many ‘add-ons’ available, and the extent to which you add them to your VoIP package really depends on your existing infrastructure and what you are looking to achieve with your new VoIP system. Now, all these ‘add-ons’ can roughly be

VoIP Speed Test   The benefits of VoIP are undeniable,  so it’s no surprise that most businesses are choosing to switch to VoIP. Unfortunately as with most things in life, just because you want to switch to VoIP doesn’t always mean that you can. You see in order for VoIP to work correctly in your businesses, your internet connection must meet certain prerequisites. This is one of the main reasons we prefer our VoIP clients to have UFB or Fibre. VoIP calls are essentially calls which are transferred over the internet instead of traditional copper telephone cables so the stronger and faster your internet connection is higher your call quality will be. The speed test below (from VoIP info.org) is an HTML5 speed test specially designed to test your system for VoIP phone calls. It checks your Internet connection’s quality and speed and provides you with an easy-to-understand report afterward. Should the results of your test be less than favorable you can always send them to our team for further diagnosis. The purpose of this speed test is to analyze an Internet connection and check the packet loss, buffer bloat, download speed, jitter, upload speed, and latency. If you don’t know what some of these terms mean there is a full explanation below, however, it is not essential to understand them at this stage. What is essential, is knowing how you perform under each, where your performance is below average it is definitely worth some further investigation and diagnosis, especially if you are considering a VoIP system in the near future. The result will also contain additional information about the tested connection. Since this is an HTML5 speed test, it doesn’t require Java or Flash, and it’s compatible with virtually all devices, which includes smartphones, tablets, and desktop computers. Ready to start your test? Click here to begin.  The test is at the top of the page click the blue – ‘Test Now’ button.   In-Depth Discussion – How the HTML5 Speed Test Works: Once you have clicked test now, the speed test has been activated. The test will work out your base speed and examine several additional factors. Once you have the results you will know what types of services are supported by your Internet connection. E.g whether your connection is it suitable for VoIP, gaming, YouTube and/or live video streaming. What to Do After Receiving a Poor Result There are many reasons for a bad result including but not limited to: Network congestion ( too many devices connected to the network) Old wiring and loose connections. Outdated hardware (Routers, modems etc) Understanding the terminology involved: While some of the terms may seem complicated it’s not actually that difficult to interpret. Once the speed test has finished running, the results of the test will be presented using the following terminology. Packet Loss This measures the number of data packets which are sent that actually make it to their destination. Ideally, the results from the test should reveal a packet

If you are reading this post it is my guess is that you’re considering upgrading your phone system to VoIP sometime in the near future. To help you avoid making any mistakes and to help you navigate the endless number of choices, tech talk, conflicting advice, and confusion… Our team would like to offer you a FREE VoIP and Communications Assessment for your business. This is an opportunity for you to get to chat with an expert who will answer all of your questions and determine which phone system is best for you based on YOUR specific needs, budget, Internet connection and existing network. It is our promise to you that you will only get straight answers to your questions and we will NOT try hard-sell you a phone system. Our goal is to help you make the BEST decision for YOUR BUSINESS. We want you to make a decision that you’re comfortable with and that will actually deliver what you want. If our system turns out to be the best option for you, we’d welcome the opportunity to serve you. If not, we’ll always give you our best recommendation and refer you to other trusted companies and or solutions. That’s how we do business at Real IT and build solid trust-based relationships with all our clients. At the End of Our Free Assessment, You’ll Know: The amount of money you will save by switching to VoIP. In most cases, we save our clients between 10% and 50%. But most importantly, you’ll have the full picture of ALL costs factored in as a Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), not just your phone-bill savings, which is what most other VoIP salespeople focus on to avoid talking about other costs involved in moving to their system. Whether a VoIP phone system will work correctly in your specific business environment. As you know, every office and network is different, so it’s critical that you get a thorough assessment of your entire network, including your bandwidth and Internet connection, firewall, system use, the volume of calls, features you need, etc., by an experienced network technician. If your Internet connection and network configuration will allow you to use a VoIP phone without problems. We’ll do a complete analysis of your current Internet connection and computer network to determine if you have sufficient bandwidth to operate a VoIP system without issues, and to look for any other factors that may negatively impact a VoIP phone system from working properly. What the best phone system is for you and your business. Our discovery process helps identify exactly what features you will need now and in the future based on how YOU do business. If you’re running a call center, you will have different needs to someone running a legal practice. If you have remote workers and a sales team that travels extensively, there are features that can help you keep these employees connected. Do you want to record calls coming in for quality and training purposes? Does your