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Best Ways to Protect Your Google Apps Account from Being Hacked

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We have seen an alarming increase in the number of Google Apps accounts that have been “hacked” across both our business and education customers. Securing your Google Apps account is crucial to protect your sensitive information and prevent unauthorized access.

Google Apps platform security is NOT the issue.  ALL of the hacked accounts are due to compromised user identities.

In every case we have encountered, the users have used their Google Apps email address and password with another service that has had a breach, or has had malware on their computer that provided username and password keystrokes to the hackers.

In both types of incidents, hackers then log in as the user and cause mayhem.

Essential Steps to Make Your Google Apps Account More Secure From Hackers:

1) Educate your users that they are not to use their Google Apps password for any other account not explicitly authorized. Users should also not use their Google Apps email address as the username for personal accounts with other services. It’s also critical to understand the risks of using third-party apps.

2) Check Your Systems for malware and make sure your endpoint protection is up to the task. If not, we recommend Webroot Endpoint Protection and Web Security Services (the link is to our edu site, but the service is available to business and government customers as well).

3)  Implement Two-Factor Authentication (2FA).  In business environments, users should be using 2FA to secure their accounts.  Implementation can be involved if you have other services linked to Google Apps, as you will need to generate service-specific passwords.

4) Use Strong Passwords: Create a strong, unique password for your Google account. Avoid using easily guessable information and include a combination of upper and lower case letters, numbers, and special characters.

5) Review Account Activity: Periodically review the recent activity on your account. Google provides a “Last account activity” feature that allows you to check for any suspicious login attempts.

6) Check Account Permissions: Regularly review the apps and services that have access to your Google account. Remove access for any applications or devices that you no longer use or trust.

7) Beware of Phishing Attempts: Be cautious of phishing emails or websites that attempt to steal your login credentials. Always verify the authenticity of emails and URLs before entering your Google account information.

In education environments, 2FA is not practical for all users, as students and many faculty members may not have mobile devices available to access the Authenticator.  For schools, we recommend any user with partial or full administrative privileges have 2FA active.

FAQs About Keeping Your Google Account Safe from Hackers

Activating 2FA is covered by our support agreements.

For customers and others without support agreements, mention this blog post and we will discount our hourly support fee by 10%; W

We will discount Webroot deployment fees by 50%.  

Both offers expire on December 31, 2014.

Please contact our Service Desk for 2FA assistance; contact Sales regarding Webroot.

 

Beware of Marketplace Apps on the Move

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Last week, Google announced that the Google Apps Marketplace was open for business to all Google Apps users, not just administrators.

While this move opens up a wide range of personal productivity applications to Google Apps users, it is not without risks.

  • Your users can now commit you to paid apps and services that you may not want as part of your environment.
  • Apps may require permissions to data in your Google Apps environment that needs to be, or you want to be, private and secure.
  • Not all apps are from well-known vendors.

As we have written in the past, third party apps can present a risk to your data and your business.  And while Bring-Your-Own-App (BYOA) can be beneficial to staff efficiency and effectiveness, Google Apps administrators should careful and should understand the security health of the domain.

As such, consider turning off marketplace access to all users.  (Customers with a support plan: Ask us and we will do this for you).

We also recommend that you consider a Google Apps Security Health Check (special offer through Sept 30th) to ensure that Marketplace, mobile, and other third party apps are not already posing a risk.

If your current Google Apps reseller is not providing guidance on best practices, security and other important issues, contact us.  We would love to have you join us as a client. 

 

 

 

Cumulus Global Tops CRN Fast Growth 150

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CRN Fast Growth 150
Cumulus Global Ranks #1 Among Elite Group of Fastest Growing Solution Providers in the IT Channel

 

Westborough, MA, September 15, 2014 – Cumulus Global, Cloud Solutions for Small and Mid-Size Enterprises, announced today that it has been named to top of the CRN Fast Growth 150 list with a two-year growth rate exceeding 680%. The Fast Growth 150 list recognizes the fastest growing IT Service providers over a two-year period, based on gross revenue from calendar year 2011 through calendar year 2013.  Cumulus Global, and other solution providers on the Fast Growth 150, have demonstrated exceptional business finesse in order to thrive despite a turbulent IT economy.

“The solution providers recognized in CRN’s Fast Growth 150 list have successfully navigated the industry’s economic upheaval and have adapted their businesses and grown despite the significant changes that evolving technologies like cloud computing, collaboration and mobility have created in the IT space,” said Robert Faletra, CEO of The Channel Company, publisher of CRN.  “These organizations are some of the most successful solution providers in business today, and it is our pleasure to recognize them for their accomplishments and draw attention to them as leaders in today’s IT channel.”

Cumulus Global’s growth stems from its growing range of cloud-based services and its expansion into new arenas, including the K-12 education and local government markets. The firm recently launched a website specific to its K-12 education offerings and services, at www.cumulusglobaleducation.com.

“We are honored by the recognition from CRN as we continue to innovate and grow”, stated Cumulus Global CEO Allen Falcon. “This growth would not be possible without our dedicated team, great vendor partners, and customers that see the value in the services we deliver.”

For small and mid-size businesses, Cumulus Global offers solutions that leverage Google Apps for Work as a business infrastructure. Using Google Apps for Work as a platform, Cumulus Global integrates advanced services to meet customers’ needs beyond email and calendars, including managed and secure file services, business and regulatory compliance, voice/video conferencing, and cloud-based or hosted line of business applications.  The company also offers a range of cloud and hosted solutions for data protection and data loss prevention.

Highlights on the Fast Growth 150 list are featured in the October issue of CRN and can be viewed online at www.crn.com.

The CRN Fast Growth 150 recognition follows Cumulus Global’s ranking at 349 on the 2014 Inc. 500 list of fastest growing private companies in America, and the company’s receiving the Boston Business Journal Pacesetter Award as the 5th Fastest Growing Provide Company in Massachusetts.

About The Channel Company

The Channel Company is the channel community’s trusted authority for growth and innovation, with established brands including CRN, XChange Events, IPED, and SharedVue. For more than three decades, we have leveraged our proven and leading-edge platforms to deliver prescriptive sales and marketing solutions for the technology channel. The Channel Company provides Communication, Recruitment, Engagement, Enablement, Demand Generation and Intelligence services to drive technology partnerships. Learn more at www.thechannelcompany.com.