What is NIST 800-171?
The Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) 252.204.7012 establishes NIST 800-171 as the minimum security standard a contractor should have to adequately protect Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). This publication was issued by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).  NIST 800-171 provides guidance for the protection of CUI when processed, stored and used in non-federal information systems.

Introducing Microsoft's More "Relaxed" Update Policy for Dynamics 365
Would you believe me if I said "no"? Microsoft recently changed their update policy to give customers more flexibility when it comes to Dynamics 365 Online upgrades. With previous releases, Microsoft introduced self-scheduled upgrades.

What is GDPR?
The General Data Protection Regulation better known as GDPR is Europe's new framework for data protection laws. These new privacy and security laws have been designed to give European Union (EU) citizens more control over their data. GDPR modernizes laws and obligations across Europe in this internet-connected age.

If you follow the news you have probably already heard of the Meltdown and Spectre security vulnerabilities affecting a large portion of the processors used in computers, tablets and smartphones. But you may be asking yourself, what are they really? Am I at risk? What can I do about it?

 
What are Meltdown and Spectre?
No, they aren't James Bond movies (technically one of them was). Meltdown is an exploit that allows attacks to bypass the layer between applications and hardware to access the computer's memory.

The Problem
Our team recently came across an issue where customers reported to us that the CRM Client for Outlook appears to be properly configured and connected, but the CRM records do not display as expected.
The Symptoms
The problem manifests as “waiting for a page to be retrieved” and the expected records from CRM are never brought after waiting over an hour.

This new version of the Petya ransomware is spreading rapidly, affecting organizations, businesses, and end users, turning into an outbreak reminiscent of the one caused by WannaCry.  It has already impacted many organizations, both large and small.

The attackers are distributing the ransomware, dubbed Petya, via a malicious email campaign targeting human resource departments.

Microsoft announced the new Surface Pro this week. It’s available for pre-order now with availability expected 6/15/2017. The new Surface Pro continues the iconic look and feel of previous Surface Pros, but has been completely redesigned from the inside out.

The WannaCry cyber-attack has been in the forefront of the news headlines worldwide. WannaCry has infected over 200,000 machines to date. Over 150 Countries and organizations such as FedEX, Nissan and Renault were infected.

A complex password is your front line of defense against your work or personal accounts being compromised by a cyber intrusion. The stronger this front line is the less likely you are of becoming a victim of a cyber-attack. Per the FBI’s website the threat of cyber-attacks is incredibly serious and growing. Cyber intrusions are also becoming more commonplace, more dangerous, and more sophisticated.