Security Bytes
The latest news and information on small business cybersecurity in byte size format!
About Author
Scott Taber joined the Michigan Small Business Development Center in 2018 as the Cyber Security Awareness Program Specialist. He is a cybersecurity professional passionate about raising awareness of every day cyber threats and trends among the Michigan small business community.
What is multifactor authentication?
Published on May 11, 2021So what is multifactor authentication? You may have heard of it, but you may not…
Read MoreProtect your passwords
Published on May 4, 2021One of the best ways to protect your passwords is by using a password manager….
Read MoreHave you backed up your data recently?
Published on April 27, 2021Have you backed up your data recently? This is an important question. Have you ever…
Read MorePhishing all day long
Published on April 21, 2021Have you ever wanted to go phishing all day long? Most of us will never…
Read MoreYour digital Spring cleaning guide
Published on April 13, 2021Welcome to your digital Spring cleaning guide for your small business! It is springtime again…
Read MoreHAFNIUM Update: What You Need to Know
Published on April 6, 2021HAFNIUM Update: What You Need to Know On March 16th of this year we posted…
Read MoreMamba Ransomware Alert
Published on March 30, 2021FBI alerts on Mamba ransomware On March 23rd, 2021, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)…
Read MoreTax Season Scams
Published on March 23, 2021With tax season well in the swing, it is important to talk about tax season…
Read MoreHAFNIUM: What you need to know
Published on March 16, 2021Hafnium: What you need to know We interrupt our March tax season posts with an…
Read MoreIRS Tax Scam Phishing Email
Published on March 9, 2021IRS Tax Scam⚠️ On February 10, 2021 the IRS and its partners put out an…
Read MoreAnd Tax Season Begins
Published on March 2, 2021As we begin March, tax season is now well underway for Michigan small businesses. Not…
Read MorePhishing: Is This Email Real or Fake?
Published on February 23, 2021Real or Fake? Security Bytes recently posed this question on our Michigan SBDC social media…
Read MoreFlorida Water Treatment Plant Hacked!
Published on February 16, 2021Did you hear about how a Florida water treatment plant was hacked, and how a crisis…
Read MoreA Second SolarWinds Hack?
Published on February 9, 2021We recently wrote about the SolarWinds hack a couple of weeks back, but there…
Read MoreIt’s Time to Update Your Passwords
Published on February 2, 2021So it’s time to update your passwords. Where do you start? Here’s some tips: Make…
Read MoreProtecting Your Passwords
Published on January 26, 2021Passwords Exposed in Google Searches We’ve all heard about the importance of protecting your passwords….
Read MoreSolarWinds Cyber-Attack: What we learned.
Published on January 19, 2021What we learned from the SolarWinds Cyber-Attack Last month a significant cyber attack was discovered….
Read MoreNew Year Cybersecurity
Published on January 12, 2021New Year, Same Cybersecurity It is important to know that it might be a new…
Read MoreSecurity Bytes wishes you happy holidays!
Published on December 22, 2020Happy Holidays! Security Bytes would like to wish all of you a happy holiday season!…
Read MoreSpear Phishing during the Holidays
Published on December 15, 2020“Out of Office for the Holidays” Messages Increases Risk of Spear Phishing Attacks Many of…
Read MoreCOVID-19 Vaccine Cyber-Scams
Published on December 8, 2020We interrupt your regularly scheduled cybersecurity during the holidays blog entry with this special alert…
Read MorePhysical Cybersecurity Protection: What is It?
Published on December 1, 2020Using Physical Cybersecurity Protection to Protect Your Small Business during the Holiday Season Usually we…
Read MoreProtect Your Retail Business
Published on November 23, 2020Protect Your Retail Business this Holiday Season With the holiday shopping season among us now…
Read MoreAvoid Phishing during the Holidays
Published on November 17, 2020Avoid Phishing during the Holidays (Eat Ham Instead!) With the holiday season in our midst,…
Read MoreShop Safe this Holiday Season
Published on November 10, 2020The Holiday Special “Oh look at the holiday special pricing! I will buy this, this…
Read MoreProtect Your Business this Holiday Season
Published on November 5, 2020As we turn the corner on Halloween and start November, we officially kick off the…
Read MoreAdapt to the Future of Connected Devices
Published on October 27, 2020The Future of Connected Devices As new technologies emerge it is important to take into…
Read MoreCybersecurity in the Medical World
Published on October 20, 2020The Importance of Cybersecurity in the Medical World It should not come as a surprise…
Read MoreSuccessfully Working Remotely During COVID-19
Published on October 13, 2020The Transition to Working Remotely Many of us transitioned to working remotely either full-time or…
Read MoreConnect and Protect Your Devices
Published on October 6, 2020Connecting and Protecting Devices As we kick off October we want to remind you to…
Read MoreStarting your cybersecurity program
Published on September 29, 2020Let’s talk about starting your cybersecurity program for your small business! Have you started your…
Read MorePhishing Emails: How Employees React
Published on September 22, 2020Phishing emails are last week’s news (Literally – check out this blog post for more…
Read MorePhishing, Vishing, and SMSishing
Published on September 15, 2020What are Phishing, Vishing, and SMSishing Here at Security Bytes we often talk about new…
Read MoreRise of DoS & DDoS Attacks
Published on September 8, 2020DoS & DDoS Attacks Focused on Financial Organizations On September 4, 2020 CISA (Cybersecurity and…
Read MoreBuilding Trust through Protecting Customer Data
Published on September 1, 2020Your customers want you to protect their data Building trust between you and your customers…
Read MoreBot Attacks on E-Commerce Websites
Published on August 25, 2020E-Commerce Websites Enduring Bot Attacks A new study by Imperva reports that e-Commerce websites have…
Read MoreSmall Business Scams and How to Recognize Them
Published on August 18, 2020CISA and SBA both Alert on COVID-19 Small Business Scams Both CISA (Cybersecurity and Infrastructure…
Read MoreFBI Issues Online Shopping Warning
Published on August 11, 2020Online Shopping Warning On August 3rd, 2020 the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Internet Crime…
Read MoreRansomware Warning from FBI
Published on August 4, 2020Ransomware Warning On July 28th, 2020 the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cyber Division issued…
Read MoreMaze Ransomware: Game Changer
Published on July 28, 2020What’s Maze Ransomware? Maze Ransomware is a unique variation of ransomware. Typically ransomware will encrypt…
Read MoreHow to Prevent Social Engineering!
Published on July 21, 2020Twitter Suffers Major Social Engineering Attack On July 15, 2020, Twitter suffered a major social…
Read More5 Tips to Protecting Online Profiles
Published on July 14, 202015 BILLION Account Credentials for Sale Research from Digital Shadows suggests that the average person…
Read MoreFound Vulnerabilities in Netgear Home Routers
Published on July 7, 2020Vulnerabilites Found in Netgear Routers On June 29th, CISA (Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency) issued…
Read MoreWhat is Multi-Factor Authentication?
Published on June 30, 2020How to Keep Your Small Business Online Accounts Secured One of the best ways to…
Read MoreHow Small Businesses can Prevent DDoS Attacks
Published on June 23, 2020Amazon Stops Record Breaking DDoS Attack! ZDNet has reported that Amazon prevented a record breaking…
Read MoreBreachstortion: What You Should Know
Published on June 16, 2020A new extortion attack has been identified! Did you know hackers can also be master…
Read MoreDeploying a New IT Solution?
Published on June 9, 2020A new phishing email campaign is targeting Office365 users. This email is claiming to be…
Read MorePPP Application Data Exposed
Published on June 2, 2020While testing a new platform on April 22nd, Bank of America exposed client’s Paycheck Protection…
Read More3 Simple Steps to Avoid COVID-19 Scams
Published on May 26, 2020On May 21, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), U.S. Department of the Treasury,…
Read MoreNo Pressure in this Phishing Email
Published on May 19, 2020A couple weeks ago we posted about Fake Delivery Emails During COVID-19 and how cyber-criminals…
Read More900,000+ WordPress Sites Attacked
Published on May 12, 2020Does your business use WordPress as its website hosting solution? According to Wordfence, a popular…
Read MoreHave You Recently Switched to a Cloud System?
Published on May 5, 2020You aren’t alone if you felt rushed in deploying a remote system during the COVID-19…
Read MoreFake delivery emails during Covid-19
Published on April 28, 2020Fake delivery emails during Covid-19 Have you received an email stating a shipment of yours…
Read MoreRansomware Increases 148% During COVID-19 Pandemic
Published on April 21, 2020Ransomware Increases 148% During COVID-19 Pandemic Security Bytes recently talked about how cybersecurity professionals reported…
Read MoreCOVID-19 Stimulus Cyber-Scams
Published on April 14, 2020 COVID-19 Stimulus Cyber-Scams Many of us will be receiving the COVID-19 stimulus from the IRS... Read MoreCybersecurity Professionals See an Increase in Cyber-Attacks
Published on April 7, 2020Cybersecurity Professionals See an Increase in Cyber-Attacks As we have been talking about here, on…
Read MoreCybersecurity Covid-19 Cyberscam Tip Sheet
Published on March 31, 2020Cybersecurity Covid-19 Cyberscam Tip Sheet As previous Security Byte’s have talked about cyber scams and…
Read MorePhishing Scams during a Crisis
Published on March 24, 2020Phishing Scams during a Crisis Last week I talked about Covid-19 related cyber scams. I…
Read MoreCovid-19 & Cybersecurity Scams
Published on March 17, 2020Covid-19 & Cybersecurity Scams Please be aware of the many different Covid-19 cyber scams that…
Read MoreDid the IRS really call me?
Published on March 10, 2020Did the IRS really call me? “This is the Internal Revenue Service; our records indicate…
Read MoreTax Season 2020
Published on March 3, 2020 Tax Season 2020 As tax season is now in full swing, it is important to... Read MoreData Privacy Month
Published on February 25, 2020 Data Privacy Month As Data Privacy Month comes to an end, it is important to... Read More2019, the year of data leaks
Published on February 18, 2020 2019, the year of data leaks As we continue to talk about data privacy during... Read MoreIntellectual Property and Data Privacy
Published on February 11, 2020 Intellectual Property and Data Privacy Often times when we speak of data privacy we focus... Read MoreData Privacy and Human Resources
Published on February 5, 2020Data Privacy and Human Resources What is data privacy? What is personally identifiable information? What…
Read MoreData Privacy Day
Published on January 28, 2020Data Privacy Day January 28 is Data Privacy Day and the kickoff to Data Privacy…
Read MoreWindows Update Scam
Published on January 21, 2020Windows Update Scam As of January 15, 2020, Windows 7 is no longer receiving updates….
Read MoreRansomware scare
Published on January 14, 2020Ransomware scare As we know, ransomware is one of the most popular attack types by…
Read MoreSecure your new devices
Published on January 7, 2020Secure your new devices Happy New Year! Welcome back to Security Bytes. Who received a…
Read MoreWindows 7 security updates discontinued
Published on December 13, 2019Windows 7 security updates discontinued As you have hopefully heard by now, Windows 7 updates…
Read MoreThe 44 million jackpot
Published on December 10, 2019The 44 million jackpot Microsoft is reporting that 44 million Microsoft accounts are using compromised…
Read MoreA third party for the holiday season
Published on December 3, 2019A third party for the holiday season With the holiday party season just about to…
Read MoreBlack Friday & Cyber Monday Shopping
Published on November 26, 2019Black Friday & Cyber Monday Shopping If you are looking to stock up on supplies…
Read MoreHoliday shopping season kickoff
Published on November 21, 2019Holiday shopping season kickoff With only a few more weeks until the busiest shopping season…
Read MoreGetting a new smartphone?
Published on November 19, 2019Getting a new smartphone? With the holidays right around the corner, there will be great…
Read MoreMalicious URLs Preferred
Published on November 12, 2019Malicious URLs Preferred We are all pretty familiar with phishing emails and about not clicking…
Read MoreAmerican Cancer Society Compromised
Published on October 29, 2019American Cancer Society Compromised TechCrunch is reporting that the online store for the American Cancer…
Read MoreMultiple cybersecurity solutions fall victim
Published on October 22, 2019Multiple cybersecurity solutions fall victim Recently, multiple cybersecurity solution providers have confirmed they have fallen…
Read MorePhishing, Vishing, & Smishing, Oh My!
Published on October 15, 2019Phishing, Vishing, & Smishing, Oh My! By now, most of us are very aware of…
Read MoreCybersecurity Awareness Month
Published on October 11, 2019Cybersecurity Awareness Month October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month! It is a great month to…
Read MoreAlert! Alert! Alert!
Published on October 1, 2019Alert! Alert! Alert! Do you have Google Alerts configured? If you do, you might want…
Read MoreYouTube accounts compromised
Published on September 24, 2019YouTube accounts compromised There have been millions of YouTube accounts compromised and taken over during…
Read MoreCybercrime as a Service (CaaS)
Published on September 17, 2019Cybercrime as a Service (CaaS) Over the last several years *insert industry* as a service…
Read MoreSome ransomware advice
Published on September 10, 2019Some ransomware advice Here at Security Bytes, I talk often on ransomware and deservedly so….
Read MoreI’m a small business, I don’t need cybersecurity
Published on August 27, 2019I’m a small business, I don’t need cybersecurity You are a small business and you…
Read MoreToo good of a mood, let’s go phishing
Published on August 13, 2019Too good of a mood, let’s go phishing Have you received your daily phishing email…
Read MoreClick Unsubscribe to unsubscribe
Published on August 6, 2019Click Unsubscribe to unsubscribe Even want to unsubscribe to that newsletter or marketing email, sure…
Read MoreEquifax Data Breach Update
Published on July 30, 2019Equifax Data Breach Update Who remembers that fateful day in September 2017 when Equifax, one…
Read MoreWordPress plugin flaw discovered
Published on July 16, 2019WordPress plugin flaw discovered A new WordPress plugin vulnerability was identified recently. The plugin, known…
Read MoreZoom! Zoom! Uh oh!
Published on July 9, 2019Zoom! Zoom! Uh oh! A serious zero-day cybersecurity vulnerability has been publicly disclosed for the…
Read MoreCan you do me a favor?
Published on July 2, 2019Can you do me a favor? “Hey, I need some gift cards purchased, can you…
Read MoreThe realities of a breach
Published on June 25, 2019The realities of a breach When a business suffers a data breach, many things can…
Read MoreEncrypted email or phishing scam, you decide
Published on June 18, 2019Encrypted email or phishing scam, you decide There is a new phishing campaign, according to…
Read MoreDoes HTTPS mean you are viewing a safe website?
Published on June 11, 2019Does HTTPS mean you are viewing a safe website? One of the quickest ways to…
Read MoreYou have undelivered emails waiting for you
Published on June 4, 2019You have undelivered emails waiting for you There is a phishing campaign targeting Microsoft Outlook…
Read MoreAnother day, another giant data breach
Published on May 28, 2019Another day, another giant data breach Last week, KrebsOnSecurity verified that First American Financial Corp….
Read MoreThe cost of a data breach
Published on May 14, 2019The cost of a data breach In 2017, Equifax suffered a massive data breach that…
Read MoreDo you have what it takes?
Published on May 7, 2019Do you have what it takes? There is a shortage of qualified cybersecurity professionals in…
Read MoreMysterious data breach affects 80 million in United States
Published on April 30, 2019Mysterious data breach affects 80 million in United States Recently cybersecurity researchers, Ran Locar and…
Read MoreThe cost of cybercrime
Published on April 23, 2019The cost of cybercrime The FBI recently released their annual Internet Crime Report and it…
Read MoreTurn your Android Smartphone into a Security Key
Published on April 16, 2019Turn your Android Smartphone into a Security Key Recently Google stated their 85,000 employees have…
Read MoreDo not plug in the USB thumb drive
Published on April 9, 2019Do not plug in the USB thumb drive Did you find USB thumb drive in…
Read MoreSupply Chain Leads to Hacking
Published on April 2, 2019Supply Chain Leads to Hacking Carbon Black recently released a report stating that half of…
Read MoreAsus infects thousands of devices
Published on March 26, 2019Asus infects thousands of devices Researchers discovered in January of 2019 that Asus’s Live Update…
Read MoreBeware the Malspam
Published on March 19, 2019Beware the Malspam Late last week, 360 Threat Intelligence Center identified a recent malspam campaign…
Read MoreData breach may have exposed 600,000 Michigan residents
Published on March 12, 2019Data breach may have exposed 600,000 Michigan residents On March 7, 2019, it was reported…
Read MoreYou get data breached once, be prepared to be data breached again
Published on March 5, 2019You get data breached once, be prepared to be data breached again During the RSA…
Read MoreCryptojacking, the newest threat
Published on February 26, 2019Cryptojacking, the newest threat You may have heard the term before, but might not have…
Read MoreSurvey says, employees put employers at risk
Published on February 19, 2019Survey says, employees put employers at risk Recent research from Microsoft says employees are still…
Read MoreMost Online Fraud Occurs in U.S.
Published on February 12, 2019Most Online Fraud Occurs in U.S. A recent Experian survey finds the US suffers the…
Read MoreApple FaceTime Bug Found
Published on January 29, 2019Apple FaceTime Bug Found You may have read in the news that a critical security…
Read MoreCaution: Web Browser Extensions Vulnerable
Published on January 22, 2019Caution: Web Browser Extensions Vulnerable Do you have a favorite web browser? I know I…
Read MoreWait, are you still using Windows 7?
Published on January 15, 2019Wait, are you still using Windows 7? A recent study published by Kollective, an enterprise…
Read MoreNew year, new cybersecurity threats!
Published on January 8, 2019New year, new cybersecurity threats! Welcome to 2019! With a new year, it is time…
Read MoreWordPress Update Released
Published on December 18, 2018WordPress update released Popular website creation tool WordPress, has recently released its latest security release…
Read MoreHoliday cyber-threats
Published on December 12, 2018Holiday cyber-threats The holidays are a time filled with giving. We give gifts to our…
Read MoreCost of cyber-attacks for small business
Published on December 4, 2018Cost of cyber-attacks for small business The Better Business Bureau surveyed over 1,000 businesses in…
Read MoreThe Padlock is Deceiving
Published on November 27, 2018The Padlock is Deceiving Look for the padlock; trust the website if it has a…
Read MoreHR Phishing Scams on the Rise
Published on November 20, 2018HR Phishing Scams on the Rise KnowBe4, the world’s largest security awareness training and simulated…
Read MoreWordPress Plugin Exploit
Published on November 13, 2018WordPress Plugin Exploit Last week a WordPress plugin, WP GDPR Compliance, reported multiple vulnerabilities. The…
Read MoreSMiShing Attacks on the Rise
Published on November 6, 2018SMiShing Attacks on the Rise You may ask yourself, “SMiShing, what is that?” Chances are…
Read MoreTwenty-one percent of consumers do not return after a data breach
Published on October 30, 2018Twenty-one percent of consumers do not return after a data breach Recent survey by PCI…
Read MoreNational Cybersecurity Awareness Month
Published on October 23, 2018National Cybersecurity Awareness Month Week 4 October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month and the National…
Read MoreNational Cybersecurity Awareness Month
Published on October 16, 2018National Cybersecurity Awareness Month Week 3 October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month and the National…
Read MoreNational Cybersecurity Awareness Month
Published on October 9, 2018National Cybersecurity Awareness Month Week 2 October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month and the National…
Read MoreNational Cybersecurity Awareness Month
Published on October 2, 2018National Cybersecurity Awareness Month Week 1 October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month and the National…
Read MoreOnline Computer and Electronic Retailer Breached
Published on September 25, 2018Online Computer and Electronic Retailer Breached Last week online retailer NewEgg disclosed they had a…
Read MoreHas your Twitter been hacked?
Published on September 18, 2018Has your Twitter been hacked? Twitter has recently enabled a new security feature that allows…
Read MoreDo you share your passwords?
Published on September 11, 2018Do you share your passwords? While you may not, chances are one of your coworkers…
Read MoreFake emails run rampant
Published on August 28, 2018Fake emails run rampant How many fake emails are sent every day? According to Vailmail,…
Read MoreNew malware discovered
Published on August 21, 2018New malware discovered Kaspersky Labs has recently discovered a new malware that has been in…
Read MoreA fax machine can do what?
Published on August 14, 2018A fax machine can do what? Does your business have a fax machine? Ever update…
Read MoreSale! Hacking tools for sale!
Published on August 7, 2018Sale! Hacking tools for sale! Recently Top10VPN published an article discussing the cost of hacking…
Read MoreMail phishing scam
Published on July 31, 2018Mail phishing scam By now, we are all familiar with email phishing scams, but have…
Read MoreGmail Phishing Campaign
Published on July 24, 2018Gmail Phishing Campaign Recently Google added a new “Confidential Mode” to their Gmail service, which…
Read MoreBusiness Email Compromise
Published on July 17, 2018Business Email Compromise The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) released an alert on July 12,…
Read MoreWorld Cup Malware
Published on July 10, 2018World Cup Malware Some good news on the malware front, EnigmaSoft, a computer software company,…
Read MoreAdidas breached
Published on July 3, 2018Adidas breached Adidas AG announced a data breach that could potentially involve millions of their…
Read MoreRansom before the encryption
Published on June 26, 2018Ransom before the encryption Ransomware has become a favorite tool of hackers to exploit small…
Read MoreWhatsApp phishing for shoes
Published on June 19, 2018WhatsApp phishing for shoes Would you like a free new pair of Adidas shoes? Does…
Read MoreCybersecurity awareness programs
Published on June 12, 2018One of the biggest cybersecurity threats to a small business is having employees who are…
Read MoreKnow your settings
Published on June 5, 2018Know your settings Late last week KrebsOnSecurity reported that businesses who use Google Groups were…
Read MoreRestart your routers!
Published on May 29, 2018The FBI recently discovered that foreign cyber actors have compromised over half a million routers…
Read MoreRansomware countdown timer
Published on May 22, 2018There is a new ransomware called StalinLocker that will play the Soviet national anthem on…
Read MoreRansomware found on legitimate websites
Published on May 15, 2018The ransomware GandCrab has recently been found on legitimate websites. The websites, although legitimate, are…
Read MoreProtecting your social media accounts
Published on May 8, 2018As you may have heard, Twitter has requested all users to change their passwords because…
Read MoreNew phishing attack targets half a billion email users
Published on May 1, 2018A new phishing attack, discovered in January, is targeting email users in the United States,…
Read MoreI have to update my router too?
Published on April 24, 2018A recent survey done by Broadband Genie shows that an astounding 86% of those polled…
Read MoreThe Survey Says!
Published on April 17, 2018A recent survey, done on behalf of IBM, found that 78% of U.S. respondents say…
Read MoreWhat Happens with Data Apps Collect?
Published on April 16, 2018If you were reading the news a week or so ago you probably saw this…
Read MoreCloud Applications are not Enterprise Ready
Published on April 16, 2018According to a recent survey performed by Netskope, 93% of cloud applications are not ready…
Read MoreDofoil Trojan Stopped by Windows Defender
Published on April 16, 2018This is a cyber-attack you probably did not hear about last week. On March 6,…
Read MoreA Rotten Army of Android Phones
Published on April 16, 2018Almost 5 million Android phones in China (currently this malware has only been seen in…
Read MoreExtra! Extra! City of Atlanta Held for Ransom!
Published on April 16, 2018If you were reading the news recently, you may have saw that the city of…
Read MoreRansomware for Sale!
Published on April 16, 2018Ransomware is the trendy new cybersecurity threat that is all the craze. It can cripple…
Read MoreAm I sharing too much?
Published on April 16, 2018If you have been watching the news recently, you are probably aware of the user…
Read More