Sharing files with colleagues and clients should be easy and convenient. What it shouldn't be is a security risk - but it frequently is. Because many small businesses don't have the right file-sharing systems and policies, many turn to unsafe practices that often put both their business's and clients' privacy in jeopardy.
Is your business guilty of engaging in dangerous file sharing habits? Here are five you need to watch out for and what you can do about them.
1. Sharing files via email
The most obvious dangerous habit is sharing files via email. Just the other day I received a design document from a client as an email attachment.
2. Using consumer-grade cloud solutions
Workers around the world are putting themselves and their employers at risk by indiscriminately using unauthorized file sharing services on their mobile and desktop devices - to the tune of $2 billion. With more workers joining the bring-your-own-device (BYOD) revolution and turning to insecure file sharing services like personal Dropbox and Google Drive accounts, the threat is greater than ever.
3. Peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing
P2P sharing is a great technology used to share data over peer networks. It's also great software to get hacked.
4. Using flash drives
Flash drives are the easy tool of choice for infection since they bypass network security. If an infected file is on a flash drive and inserted into a system, it can start an infection spread from the PC.
5. Lack of visibility
The danger starts when employees take matters into their own hands and engage a file sharing service on their own. The individual making a one-off decision is not going to be thinking of the bigger picture of organization-wide requirements.
It's a truth as universal as it is annoying; if you want all your devices to work with a specific keyboard, well, you'll probably need either one for each, sign on for precisely one device ecosystem, or get used to swiping in words. Travelers in particular are driven insane by this problem, so Logitech decided, quite cleverly, to solve it with the K480.
Swiss Army Keyboard
There are two problems with modern portable keyboards. The first is, as we noted, device compatibility. Ask anybody who's had to install drivers just to get a basic keyboard to work, the various device ecosystems out there don't play well with each other and seemingly want to drive you insane.
Logitech solves this with some clever design. You can switch between three different places to send your words, so that regardless of whether you're all Apple, or a mix of Apple, Chrome, and Windows, you'll be able to use the keyboard and get the point across. Basically, if it uses Bluetooth, you're all set to type.
At The Trough
The second problem is keeping all your stuff organized; you've got your phone over here, your tablet over there, and your laptop in front of you… and many keyboards want to be docked solely at your tablet. How does Logitech solve this? Simple: It puts a trough at the top of the keyboard that can easily be used to stand up both your tablet and your phone, and to type away at both of them with ease.
A Keyboard For The Multitasker
Multitasking, or at least sorting through your various tasks properly, can be a profoundly annoying experience, and Logitech deserves credit for looking at how we actually use our gadgets and creating a keyboard that fits in with them. If that's something you need, it starts at just $50.