HJS Essentia

The 4th Utility?

2011-09-14T10:13:00.000+01:00

‘You can spend hours saving time with a computer’ – a sentiment that probably rings true with many people that have to interact with a computer in their day to day lives. As frustrating as it can be, getting the right result from your computer, it has become an essential item for the majority of business workers.

From e-mail to Internet based transactions, letter writing to banking, we rely on our computers in a similar way to our other utilities like gas, water and electricity.
With something so imperative to your business, it is paramount to ensure it runs smoothly and with the least number of interruptions.

As computer software has become more common place, and the same software has crossed over into our homes and schools, it has become the norm to do some regular activities on our computer to try and keep it up to date, and in generally good order.

We would certainly recommend that this attitude is adopted, and taking a pro-active approach to looking after your computer software and hardware will definitely increase its working life, and provide you with a more stable service.

To liken this to other essential items, your vehicles, central heating boiler and air conditioning, your computer systems (including the workstations and servers) all benefit from regular maintenance and servicing.

The good news is that although a small amount of this servicing requires the presence of a trained individual to perform ‘on-site’, the majority of the software servicing can be handled in such a way that it is non-invasive and without down time to your business.

This proactive service is also taken a step further by the continual monitoring of key services, to allow your support company to stay close to every part of your system, and be on top of any faults and failures that could lead to a much more substantial break down.

Therefore, pro-active Computer Systems and Network monitoring, along with regular and frequent software and hardware maintenance will bring you a reliable and continuous service from your 4th Utility, meaning an efficient office and ultimately happy customers.

If you would like to benefit from this type of close computer network management, please contact us on 02380 386586

Now, where did I put it?

2011-08-03T09:44:00.000+01:00

Holiday season has arrived and many workers are preparing for the off to sunnier climes, looking forward to putting their feet up for some well-earned rest.

It isn’t uncommon for many workers to feel that they should keep one eye on their office, often because they feel they would be able to relax more if they know that there are no major problems. Some feel as if they must be contactable throughout, and the really lucky ones have no problems completely switching off.

A recent survey of workers revealed the following statistics about our work/holiday balance:

• 95% take mobiles and smartphones abroad with the expectation of working
• 64% will take a laptop abroad
• 65% will remain in contact with the office of which nearly 50% will check emails at least once a day

The unseen issue with taking work with you is that if you are taking one of the many mobile devices that are available to keep in touch with your colleagues and customers, you are also exposing your business to the risk of this device being lost or stolen.

• 66% of these laptops will be unencrypted
• 51% left totally insecure without even a password for protection

And only 58% of workers worry about the security of the data they’ll take with them;

An unrelated survey of airports in the United States found that travellers left behind more than 11,000 laptops, tablet PCs, smart phones and USB sticks in the past year in USA alone

So, it is important not to forget that probably the most important and most expensive item you could be carrying on holiday is your company data.

To find out ways in which we can help to secure you and even your employees when out of the office, please contact us today

Happy holidays…

Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s a bird.

2011-07-22T10:52:00.000+01:00

HJS Essentia’s Will Taylor and Poonam Pottiwal recently assisted [sonus] in their charity collection day. Will and Poonam were helping the team on Itchen Bridge in Southampton. Will became Sesame Streets’ Big Bird for the day and Poonam was very daring in her fancy dress…by donning a high viz vest.

A big thanks to all who donated to the charity (use the link above if you wish to donate but missed the chance).

HJS Essentia’s Will Taylor educating the road users of Itchen Bridge.

Exciting times..

2011-07-12T12:42:00.000+01:00

In this current era of hearing sad reports about businesses closing down, we have some positive news. Due to the increased customer base and establishment of new departments HJS Essentia is expanding.

In all areas we have new team members: technical, administration and sales. With all the new staff we literally had nowhere to fit everyone! Walls have been removed at “Essentia Towers” and now our open plan office is even more open. The rumours that there’s now so much space that the sales team will be holding afternoon tea dances every third Thursday of the month are (reassuringly) untrue.

All this change is great news for everyone as it means our workforce have greater capacity in providing for your business needs. If you have a new business technology requirement call us today.

The Thames awaits our intrepid swimmers

2011-06-24T15:02:00.000+01:00

HJS Essentia’s Simon Gale and Steve Brackstone are now days away from taking part in the British Gas Great London Swim 2011. As you can see from the photo, training has been going well (SOME editing may have taken place on this image).

We wish all the swimmers in the event the best of luck and hope a great amount of money is raised for the represented charities. If you would like to sponsor Simon and Steve please visit their Just Giving page.

Simon and Steve – go for it!

Customer Survey (June 2011)

2011-06-07T15:23:00.000+01:00

Thank you to all those that took the time to complete the HJS Essentia Customer Survey. We had a good number of respondents and whilst the results were pleasing we certainly won’t be sitting on our laurels. The maxim “there’s always room for improvement” still stands true.

All respondents were entered into a draw for an HTC Smartphone.

The lucky winner of an HTC Legend was Peter Foyle of Mitchells Worktops Ltd. Congratulations Peter!

If you missed out this time, take heart – there will be further opportunities in the future to win a “gorgeous gadget”. If you can’t wait and want to get your hands on an Android, Blackberry or iPhone talk to our communications team today.

It could be you...

2011-05-20T14:13:00.000+01:00

HJS Essentia are looking for a part time Receptionist and Administration Assistant. Five hours a day (9:30 – 14:30), five days a week (Monday – Friday).

Main roles:

      - Provide support for directors and sales staff to ensure efficient provision of customer service.

      - First line customer contact via telephone and provide administrative support to the
        team as required.

Key tasks:

- Handle incoming telephone calls in an efficient and professional manner.

- Make outbound calls to customers to keep them informed of progress for outstanding jobs.

- Review the outstanding job list and ensure that call-back deadlines are met.

- Support the Administration Manager in a range of administrative tasks which may include
handling post and maintaining internal records.

- Other sundry tasks as required by the directors from time to time.

Key performance indicators:

- Positive contribution to customer satisfaction, evidenced by zero negative feedback.

- Maintaining the goal of zero overdue job tickets.

- Accurate completion of all telephone messages.

- Satisfactory completion of tasks delegated by Administration Manager – monitored for
accuracy and timeliness.
_____________________________________________________________________________

Please address all applications to hr@hjsessentia.co.uk
_____________________________________________________________________________

Fore!

2011-05-18T07:37:00.000+01:00

Our budding golfers, James Gibson and Simon Gale recently roped in some silverware. In combination with their team mates Jeff Knight and Mark Morgans they successfully raised the cup for the Wessex Heartbeat Golf Day 2011.

The competition featured 20 teams battling it out on the 18 hole golf course at Remedy Oak.

Congratulations to “Team Essentia” and thanks to everyone who entered.

From left to right: Team Essentia (Mark Morgans, James Gibson, Jeff Knight & Simon Gale) with D’Arcy Myers (Chief Executive Wessex Heartbeat).

It’s good to talk…

2011-05-06T00:32:00.001+01:00

…but not when your provider keeps increasing the cost...

October 2010
BT increase call charges by 10% and line rental by 50p

April 2011
BT increase call charges by 9% and line rental by 30p

Anyone notice a pattern emerging here?

Now is a good time to move your calls and line hosting over to HJS Essentia – our stable service is already 30% cheaper on average than BT (and that was before the April price hike). Over the last four years our prices have in fact reduced. Our tariff structure is designed to be easy to understand so won't leave you scratching your head whilst wading through countless addendums and footnotes. If you ever have a question about the service and you can't find the answer (or don't have the time to look it up) we are there for you. We do not (and will not) farm our support offshore, so you'll be speaking to someone who's not reading from a script and is empowered to help you right from the outset.

HJS Essentia can reliably provide your data and voice solutions giving you the advantage of joined up thinking when it comes to your telecommunication requirements. With the reassurance of one dedicated point of contact for all phone and data related issues nothing can "fall between the gaps" as is all too common when multiple parties are involved (or indeed huge faceless corporations with outsourced call centres).

Talk to an HJS Essentia communications specialist today on 023 8038 6586 and let us take care of your business communication needs.

Crossing the Thames (the wet way)

2011-04-21T18:02:00.001+01:00

On the 2^nd July 2011 HJS Essentia's Simon Gale and Steve Brackstone will be donning their wetsuits and taking the plunge. Now in its third year the British Gas Great London Swim 2011 is to be staged at the Royal Victoria Docks in London. Simon and Steve are swimming for Wessex Cancer Trust and have been training in preparation for the swim for the last three months are due to start training next week.

To encourage our budding "Thorpedos" and more importantly to benefit a good cause they would be extremely grateful if you could make a donation via their Just Giving page. If you'd like to watch them perform their interpretations of dolphin and whale respectively we're sure they would appreciate your support on the day.

Simon, Sally Hall (Wessex Cancer Trust) and Steve.

Investing in the infrastructure

2011-04-07T15:15:00.001+01:00

Following on from the success of the recent Customer Relations training HJS Essentia have been refining their team working skills.

Ensuring that the support service was unaffected by staggering the training over two days the team have been evaluating and improving upon their team communication and methods.

This investment in the company's unique asset: its staff, is borne out of a genuine desire to continue to raise the bar on the quality of service we can provide our customers.

It was a constructive time with the opportunity for everyone to consider how we communicate and what we can do to improve the efficiency of our team interactions as a whole.

Our aim is that through this continued commitment to staff development HJS Essentia can enhance its reliable IT support service and deliver exceptional IT /telecom solutions for our growing customer base.

Is an iPad2 useful?

2011-04-05T14:30:00.001+01:00

You're more than likely aware of the recent media attention surrounding the launch of Apple's latest version of the iPad, cleverly called the iPad2. But what is the point of these machines?

Use of the Internet is now no longer the domain for pale faced individuals with little in the way of social skills (geeks, nerds, take your pick for nicknames). It is truly a global resource and its uses range from keeping in touch with friends, shopping, entertainment and even completing your census return (you have done that haven't you?)

What is now changing is the way in which people access the Internet. Historically connection to the Internet was via a desktop computer attached to a modem / phone line. With the introduction of wireless networking (WiFi) and broadband, suitably equipped laptops became a more favoured method for "web surfing". Sitting in the living room whilst checking your email is now commonplace.

Ironically, one of the most uncomfortable places to rest a laptop can be on your lap. Over a short space of time the heat the laptop generates becomes quite uncomfortable (unless it's a cold night, though I don't think this is the most effective heating system available). This is where the "tablet PC" comes into its own. These devices are touch screen driven so no need for a mouse or indeed a keyboard, the vast majority of the unit is the actual screen. With the addition of mobile phone data technology these devices become totally portable.

The Apple iPad, and subsequent iPad2, have taken the tablet PC format to a new level of sophistication. The iPad's easy to use interface is what differentiates it from everyone else's offerings. Ease of use is one thing but what about the programs it can run? The Apple App Store currently provides over 400,000 different programs (or "apps") so there should be something of interest to most individuals.

Photos, music, videos - so many other possibilities! For further information about how an iPad2 can change the way you access the digital world, talk to us…

Your phone bill, in their hands……

2011-03-21T17:58:00.001Z

The abuse of telephone systems is not a new phenomenon. Back in 1957 Joe Engressia Jr (who subsequently changed his name to Joybubbles in 1991!) was whistling down phone lines. He initially discovered through his ability to whistle pitch perfectly that he was able to produce tones that the phone system recognized as a "hang up" signal. Over time he perfected more tones until he was able to initiate long distance phone calls for free. He was expelled from college after being caught providing telephone calls for a dollar per call. In the early 1970's before digitalization replaced the tone-based system, many young phone hackers, or phreakers as they were known, were running amok on the US phone network – even the founders of Apple, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, were allegedly involved during their nascent years.

A 1970's youngster making a phone call for free is one thing (and almost viewed as a kind of Robin Hood gesture in light of the phone corporations' vast wealth at the time) but phreaking in the 21^st century is a decidedly darker, more sinister affair. By compromising unsuspecting companies' telephone systems, today's phone hackers (phreakers by definition – but far removed from the tame efforts of the late 20^th century), are able to fund international crime and terrorism. Exploiting a company telephone system is worryingly straightforward and once a system is in the hands of a phreaker they have access to the system passwords and a free reign on placing calls. The calls are typically routed through the invaded system outside of office hours and during weekends so the activity goes unnoticed (that is, until the next phone bill comes through). The criminals translate these calls to cash by selling "pre-paid" phone cards to unsuspecting members of the public. The calls cost the criminals nothing so the phone card proceeds are pure profit.

Globally phone fraud is four times bigger than credit card fraud and the UK is one of the top 5 countries to be targeted by phone hackers. Companies with affected systems have found their phone bill leap to 20 times the standard cost – some have experienced even greater amounts and the first they knew anything about it was on receipt of their phone bill. A security breach on an unprotected system can take milliseconds to initiate. Once inside the phone system phreakers will, by default, avoid all network and internet security and thus gain backdoor access to PCs and data networks.

There is, you'll be relieved to hear, a solution. These days firewalls are a standard feature on computers and data networks, and now there's a firewall for your phone system. When it comes down to guarding your company's assets the use of a phone system firewall can detect and kill diverted calls – the preferred route for phreakers. Talk to one of hjs essentia's telecommunications experts today about protecting your office telephone system from attack.

Let me help you…

2010-11-22T18:07:00.001Z

Believe it or not but the underworld is beginning to get particularly cheeky!

I had a phone call from my parents this afternoon, who are retired, but young at heart! They were called by an off-shore call centre asking them if they have problems with their computer, the person asked questions along the lines of..

Do you find your computer has become slower than it used to be?
Is your Internet connection slower than you would like it to be?
Does your computer take too long to start up?

All of these questions are probably answered by the majority of the population with a resounding 'Yes' – and are asked purely as a way to gain trust and get you to give them access to your computer.

The next request from the operator was…

"Would you like me to log onto your PC and perform a complimentary PC cleanup?"

Thankfully my parents already have a person they can rely on for IT support, but there are many people that don't have that luxury, and the sound of a complimentary clean up could be tempting.

The final out-come of these telephone calls is that the call centre operative will install software to look like it is performing a clean-up, when it is actually scanning your computer and stealing your personal data.

The idea of highlighting this story is to show the lengths that organised criminals will go to in order to access your computer. This is a threat that only really affects home users, but how many of us use our home computer to connect to our office systems?

Once the criminals have this data, it does expose a threat to your business.

For years we have been warned away from 'click that link' or 'downloading that file' – now the criminals are offering to come and do it for you!

If you have any issues or questions regarding security, or if you would like to discuss your company IT systems, please contact us on 02380 386586

Have you got your keys?

2010-10-27T15:01:00.001+01:00

Whilst on the phone to my bank this week I was asked the question as to whether I had ever been asked about Identity Fraud.

I tried to say 'Yes' but in true call centre fashion the operative carried on and told me about it anyway! As much as that information was not very helpful, it did make me think about the current state of security in our ICT world.

Most people have got the message on how important regular and tested data backups are within the business community, but more general IT security is still not paid enough attention.

Microsoft have recently reported that more than 2.2 million US PC's were 'hijacked' in the first 6 months of 2010, with up to 250 billion SPAM messages being sent per month.. Although the majority of these were home computers, it does highlight the importance of security and the need to constantly review it.

Much of the hijacking was designed to send SPAM email messages, in order to solicit 'clicks' to unscrupulous web sites. However, the power behind the designers of such software can be equally as dangerous in the commercial world. A recent quote from Cisco (one of the largest computer networking companies in the world) highlighted the point: "When your enemy is financially motivated, you have to be on alert"

The threats to IT security are ever-changing, as the attackers get cleverer. There is evidence of groups of 'hackers' forming alliances and renting their damaging software to each other.

So what are the potential risks to your business? It is a subject that we should definitely spend some time thinking about especially when so many of us have such a huge amount of information about our customers, employees, financial records, and internal procedures. What impact would it have if that information was "stolen" by someone copying everything, or even destroyed?

I would liken it to leaving the keys in your car, or leaving a filing cabinet open in a public place for anyone to sift through. We are always very careful to keep our physical items secure, but should also spend as much time (if not more) on securing the 'virtual' items too

There are a number of measures which can be put in place to protect your data and IT systems. If you haven't had a recent security audit undertaken, hjsEssentia is offering (for a limited period only) a free security review and consultation. Contact Me on 023 8038 6586.

Passwords, it's all change...(again)

2010-08-31T08:24:00.001+01:00

Once again 'lack of' security has hit the headlines with the Yorkshire Building Society being found guilty of leaving an insufficiently secure laptop overnight, leading to it being stolen. To compound this, it was left with hand written password notes!! We have also very recently heard of many thousands of PayPal accounts compromised through iTunes and the huge financial company Zurich 'losing' an unencrypted backup tape. The impact of all of these cases means that many of their customers have had their details in the hands of unscrupulous individuals.

How many times do we have to be caught with our doors and windows open before we take it seriously?

Just having the details of existing accounts is not enough to assume the users identity, there is also another piece of information that is paramount..the password .

So, are your passwords strong enough?

Did you know that experts have found t is possible to break an 8 digit password in approximately 2 hours?

The good news is that should you choose to add 4 extra characters to your password, it will take 17,134 years to make the password snap.

There are many ways we can help ourselves to limit the possibility of our passwords being broken. They include;

Having a policy to change it regularly
Making sure we always use unrelated/complex words
Maybe start to use full sentences as a password?

If you would like further help or advice on security related to your IT, we have experts on hand ready to take your call.

02380 386586

The price of watching TV online

2010-08-09T12:19:00.001+01:00

I have picked up a fair bit of news relating to the growing trend of watching TV online, when not in the UK.

Many of our customers ask us how they can watch services like BBC iPlayer and ITV Player when they are on holiday or working overseas.

Many people don't realise that it is not possible to watch these services unless your internet connection is directly attached to an Internet Service Provider often from the country of origin.

The licensing laws are quite strict, which restricts the use of such services, including Hulu and SeeSaw.

The Internet is, however, littered with services that profess to circumnavigate these controls, but at what cost?

Many of these services work by creating a link between your computer and a special server on the Internet which will mask your actual location and pretend you are linked in from somewhere else.

This connection is (in most cases) a V.P.N. This stands for Virtual Private Network and is not at all uncommon to travelling business people, as it is used in many instances for them to connect from their computer to their office.

The danger with this type of connection is that the server you are attached to could gain access to your computer and whilst you are watching your favourite episode of East Enders, all of your data is being copied from your computer.

The moral of the story is, always be sure you know who you are creating a VPN connection with!

If you have experienced any issues with this type of technology, or would like any advice, please feel free to contact us at www.hjsessentia.co.uk

Blackberry Services – Not Global ?

2010-08-06T09:24:00.001+01:00

The 'IT' news has been full of speculation as to the possible security risk posed to the national security of some countries, by using Blackberry services.

Every single email that is sent to and from a Blackberry Handset, at some time in its life, travels via the Blackberry Servers, provided by the manufacturers called RIM (Research In Motion).

The reason given for looking at banning Blackberry services (including email and messenger) is because potentially confidential information is routed out of the country of origin, before delivery to the intended recipient.

Some Governments are looking at this as a risk that does not need to be taken, so much so the UAE will be banning these services from October 11^th 2010.

The interesting thing about this is that whenever anyone discusses the best, high security way for business, from big to small, to provide email services on the move in the most secure way, the answer is Blackberry!

In relation to many services, Blackberry has the most security and control possible over the user's handsets. It is possible to execute many commands to a Blackberry handset, including blocks on lost or stolen handsets, installing new applications, setting up (provisioning) new handsets, as well as tracking all emails sent and even viewing text messages. All communications between a Blackberry and the servers the information travels through is highly encrypted.

So is it that the governments are unhappy with the security, or is it more likely that they are unhappy with not being able to break the security?

If you are interested in Blackberry and would like to know more, please feel free to get in touch with us at www.hjsessentia.co.uk

Remote working, help or hindrance ? Part II

2010-07-23T17:11:00.000+01:00

There are many ways in which IT and Telecomms systems can be made available to the workforce, but we are exploring the concept today that although these services are of obvious benefit to the employer, the employee may not agree!

Many employers relish the opportunity to have work performed outside of normal working hours, effectively for free in many cases.

Our studies have shown that although the above is true, the benefits of being connected are seen as worth while, and the short comings are seen as not so much of a problem. Employees in small businesses are generally concientious, and having the ability to alay a worry about completing a task, or seeing a timely communication is very well received, when 'out of hours'

So our findings are simply that remote working is not only relatively simple to achieve for small businesses, with the provision of better office connectivity, a good IT support company (like @hjsessentia) and remote working solutions.... everyone is happy!

Remote working, help or hindrance ?

2010-07-20T23:58:00.001+01:00

In today's society we are very often expected to be available all the time, and to this end our company spends a lot of time installing systems that allow the workforce to be able to get to all of their critical information, from anywhere.

With the unstoppable marching of the Internet providing the well used term 'Cloud' computing, the level of always on, constantly available service is much higher.

But do employees want this? The benefits to the employer are obvious, but is this type of tech a good thing for the worker.?

We will be discussing this in our next post.