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C-Net Systems

Get IT done, no matter what it takes. This is the approach we've used to provide IT services to businesses in Southeast Michigan since 1998.

C-Net Systems IT technicians have the experience and knowledge to support a wide variety of different systems and networks. Services include professional onsite IT support, 24/7 monitoring and maintenance, offsite backup, managed firewalls and SPAM filtering, workstation and server leasing, network and server management, remote support, onsite computer repair for businesses and homes, flat rate dr

op off computer repair services and more. Visit us at our Computer Repair Shop located at 7867 24 Mile at 24 Mile and Van D**e or call us: 586-816-0015.

**2013 Award Winning Sustainable Company from Michigan's 101 Best & Brightest**

07/31/2024

🚀 Big News from C-Net Systems! 🚀

We are pleased to announce that C-Net Systems has joined forces with Secur-Serv.

Nick Tobin, owner of C-Net Systems, commented, “We are thrilled to join Secur-Serv, a company that shares our commitment to exceptional service and support.”

This acquisition marks a significant step in our growth strategy, ensuring our clients benefit from the latest technologies and robust cybersecurity measures.

Read the full story: https://secur-serv.com/transom-capital-backed-scantron-acquires-c-net-systems/

03/09/2021

C-Net Systems Response to Microsoft Exchange Mass Threat / Hafnium Exploit

There is a large-scale threat to on-premise Microsoft Exchange servers that we became aware of on March 3rd. We implemented our emergence response plan for 0-day threats and vulnerabilities and began the process of patching all Exchange Servers under our control with most being fully patched by Wednesday night / Thursday morning.

This new threat is multifaceted and new information continues to come in daily. As this evolves, and like the SolarWinds exploit, we expect additional vulnerabilities to be discovered and will we continue to update our response over the coming weeks and months.

At this time, we have discovered evidence of the attack payload on several servers but have not found any activity that puts any of our clients’ data at risk nor any active infections or secondary exploits.

With the information we have so far, we have mitigated the paths this latest threat exploits, but we continue to operate as if the exploit is still a threat and will do so for the foreseeable future.

This threat affects ALL on-premises Exchange servers and, like all these latest threats, they are nondiscriminatory. Meaning they do not care if you are a big or small company or if your data is valuable or not, these threats will affect you at some point.

This underscores the need for all PCs, Laptops, and Servers to be protected and continually updated. If you do not have our MSLite or MSPro services, this should be a wakeup call as the threats are not going away and are continuing to increase in frequency and severity. Protecting these endpoints as well as offsite backups are a necessity, not an option, and are requirements for protecting a business’s data.

Nicholas Tobin
C-Net Systems, Inc.

More Information: https://www.microsoft.com/security/blog/2021/03/02/hafnium-targeting-exchange-servers/

10/21/2020

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, working remote is the new norm for many and working from outside the office adds a new level of complexity to network security.

The PCs and Laptops used to connect remotely are typically less protected and home usage often means going to different types of websites, opening up additional paths for cyber threats. The uptick in phishing attacks is an early warning that cyber criminals have been adjusting their tactics from targeting relatively well secured business networks to less defended/secured home offices and other connections used by remote workers.

The goal is to protect the business network from any and all outside threats while still allowing remote users to work productively. As we continue to adjust how and where we work, we wanted to send out what our new recommended minimums are to secure businesses from cyber threats. Below is what we recommend as a starting point or baseline security to protect business networks.

Endpoint Protection

In the past, antivirus protection was all that was needed. Now, that need has morphed into Endpoint Protection which is a sophisticated suite of tools that provides antivirus, antimalware, AI that analyzes malicious patterns, and OS hardening that blocks exploits. This is a crucial line of defense for the local machine. Sophos Intercept X Endpoint is our starting point recommendation for all home and business machines. Those using traditional antivirus alone need to upgrade.

Patching and Preventive Maintenance with ESNSS
Keeping up with patches and maintenance is another crucial part of securing machines and networks from cyber threats. Our Expert Support Now Security Suite or ESNSS provides real time monitoring with managed OS patching, and regular maintenance that ensures operating systems are up to date and secured from evolving threats.

Managed Firewall

Firewalls secure access to and from the internet for business networks and are required for network protection. Firewalls provide VPN access that is needed to secure remote access and no business should allow remote access without a VPN. We recommend our managed Firewall solution that includes a managed and monitored Sophos Firewall which can be enabled with Synchronized Security adding an additional layer of protection with local machines that have Sophos Intercept X Endpoint.

Virtual Private Network – VPN

VPNs create a secure tunnel to connect to a business network and are a function of a business’s firewall. Software VPNs or VPNs that are not provided by the firewall connected to the business are not the same and do not protect the network. Our solution is a VPN administered through our managed firewall.

Offsite Backup

No matter how secure a business network is, data backups will always be needed to safeguard data from loss due to a cyberattack or hardware failure. We offer offsite storage and backup of critical data for servers, workstations and O365 email accounts as well as high availability replication and failover solutions for mission critical systems. Backups are often the first recovery method in ransomware cases due to cost of downtime and repair costs and storing backup data offsite ensures that data is secured and remains available.

Two-Factor Authentication – 2FA

Two-factor authentication (2FA) is a specific type of multi-factor authentication (MFA) that strengthens access security by requiring two methods to verify your identity. The factors include something you know - like a username and password - plus something you have - like a smartphone app - to approve authentication requests. 2FA protects against phishing, social engineering, and secures your logins from attackers exploiting weak or stolen credentials. We are a Duo Technology Partner and recommend Duo be used for O365 and all other internet facing applications.

Encryption

If company data is stored on laptops, home computers, or other devices that are not securely located in the office, those devices should be encrypted. Encryption ensures that the data stored on those devices is not accessible if that device is lost or stolen. We utilize Sophos Central Device Encryption to protect against this.

Dark Web Monitoring

Stolen usernames and passwords are constantly being uploaded to the dark web where cybercriminals use these credentials to gain access to business networks along with thousands of other sites including banking, filesharing, and social media. Our monitoring service alerts businesses as new employee credentials are found and often provides the source of the breach as well as the password itself.

Is Your Business is Prepared?

We are helping many businesses remain productive by setting up secure ways for people to access their systems remotely and we continue to enhance and add new solutions as needs change.

For more information on how we can help your business cope with this new normal, contact us at [email protected], call 586-816-0015, or visit www.cnetsys.com.

05/05/2020

Everyday Should be National Teacher Day

We have always valued the people who help prepare our children for the future but I think a lot of us forgot what a tough job that can be and we wish it did not take this situation to make us remember.

When this all started in mid-March, one thing that I will always remember is how the teachers of my three kids started emailing out things to do to help keep the kids busy and continue learning. The teachers did this without a formal plan and without knowing what was going to happen in the future. They did this because they cared, not because they had to.

They stepped up and it helped give some normalcy to our kids; it was needed, and it worked.

Thank you, Teachers! We truly appreciate all that you do!

03/23/2020

Ongoing IT Support and Our Commitment to Clients

Together, we will get through this.

At C-Net Systems the health and safety of our employees, customers and communities we service are our top priority. IT support is considered critical to infrastructure and we do not anticipate being mandated to close.

At this time, there are no interruptions to our online/remote support; however, we are only providing onsite support when absolutely necessary and taking additional safety precautions. As restrictions continue to change daily, we will continue to modify our services accordingly.

As of 3/23/20 the majority of our staff is working remotely from home and our north office is available by appointment for pickups only. Our systems are 100% online and fully functional. All backup, monitoring, and maintenance tasks are fully staffed and will continue to provide support and security for our clients.

We are asking that, when possible, support requests be sent via email to [email protected] which will create a support ticket automatically in our system. This will help us provide faster support by allowing us to focus on tickets as they are created.

While this is by no means business as usual, our employees regularly work remotely and this transition has been relatively smooth and we remain fully available to support you.

Our thoughts are with you and your loved ones as we navigate through these unprecedented times.

03/13/2020

Laptops and PCs Needed for Students for Remote Learning

With schools moving to remote learning, there is a concern that not all students have a PC or laptop at home to access the system.

We have a limited number of machines that have come off lease or refurbished that we would like to give to help those students that do not have access to one at home.

We have 18 PCs and 1 laptop internally that we will give but I imagine we will need many more and we will definitely need monitors.

If you have a working PC, Laptop, or monitor that you are willing to donate, we will do a secure erase of the hard drive then reload software and antivirus to have a working machine we can get to a student in need.

There will be no cost for any of the work and no cost to the student in need.

This is uncharted territory and myself, Erika, and everyone at C-Net Systems are doing what we can to help. I encourage everyone to think about what they can do to help others through this.

At this time, we are trying to see what the needs are and how many machines we will be able to give. We will provide more information once we have it. If you know of a local student that has a genuine need or if you have a working PC, Laptop, or monitor to donate please contact me at the email we set up at [email protected].

We will be working with the schools around us through various school groups and we will be working with school administrators to get these out as quickly as possible.

Nick

03/11/2020

Working Remote and Coronavirus Preparedness

Regardless of whether the Coronavirus is over hyped or not, it will most likely affect our daily lives and the way we work in the coming weeks and months.

Major events are being canceled along with businesses having employees stay home. Many local schools have already changed attendance policies and there is a precedent for closing schools with infected students.

When the virus starts spreading in Michigan there could be significant disruptions to how or where we work.

Internally, we are putting in place measures to ensure our level of support is not impacted.

To reduce the productivity and financial impact to businesses, we encourage our clients to consider what data, programs, or network access would be needed for people to remain efficient if they had to be out of the office for a few days or for an extended period of time.

For most, access to their actual office PCs is the simplest, most efficient way to give people the ability to work remotely.
In the past, that was an easy option by enabling Remote Desktop or using services like LogMeIn.

Unfortunately, those options alone are now the low hanging fruit for cyber criminals. Remote connections are one of the most exploited paths into a network for hackers and cannot be recommended or used without additional security measures.

Fortunately, the additional security measures are fairly easy to navigate for end users and can be implemented quickly with the right equipment.

Through the use of Virtual Private Networks or VPNs we can confidently secure remote access. When setup properly, VPNs allow a secure path to the network that can be further locked down to allow access to only a specific subset of network resources.

The most secure VPN setup is having a connection directly to the firewall that is protecting the business’s network. This allows the firewall to maintain security and control access to only the network resources that a business chooses to allow.

Direct access to network resources such as AS/400 or iSeries programs, web applications on non-dedicated servers, and other programs that historically were open to direct access from the internet are now no longer recommended to be used without a VPN due to recent exploits and increased security risks.

Online VPN services or utilities that allow direct access to a PC or server on a network is not the same as a VPN that connects to a business’s firewall and are not recommended, not safe, and puts network resources at risk.

Adding a VPN to an existing network requires a firewall that is powerful enough to handle the number of concurrent connections and is fairly quick to implement but does take some planning. All business networks require some sort of firewall and if C-Net Systems provided the firewall it may already support VPN connections in some capacity.

We are recommending that all businesses plan for how having people out of the office will impact their productivity and contact us right away to see what their options are for working remote. We expect to have a fairly large need for remote access so the sooner you contact us the better so we can make sure to get everyone covered.

Other things to think about are phones and the ability to answer or transfer calls to remote locations. IP based phone systems are easier to find solutions for but older analog systems may not be able to have remote options. Call forwarding is another possibility that should be planned out well before it is needed due to how different carriers work.

Contact us today at 586-816-0015 or [email protected] to see what options are available for your business.

10/28/2019

This will be our 4th year proudly supporting this wonderful organization.

05/10/2018

Are Your Passwords For Sale on the Dark Web?

See How Easy it is to Crack Password Hashes Found on the Dark Web

In this video, we show how easy it is to find the real user password by cracking password hashes found for sale on the dark web.

The password hashes used here are from actual results found through our Dark Web Monitoring service.

The users have been notified their passwords are available and we have blurred out the corresponding email address for security reasons.

The tool we are using and many like it are readily available. If this utility cannot crack the hash, it’s easy to find another free utility that will.

Passwords are often stored in hashes rather than in plain text to help secure them. Unfortunately, the availability of free tools and increases in computing power have made that practice useless as hashes are easily cracked.

There are other ways that developers are using to further secure passwords but adoption is slow and the majority of sites have not implemented any new security measures.

Security breaches are here to stay and expose sensitive information every day. As long as passwords are used to secure information, your only defense is to lessen your exposure by using unique passwords for every site and application and by monitoring so you know when your password information is stolen.

Our Dark Web monitoring service alerts our clients when their credentials are found for sale and our Password Management service helps users create, store, and use strong, unique passwords.

For more information or if you are a business and want to see if any of your businesses’ passwords are on the dark web, visit us at www.cnetsys.com/darkweb/.

05/03/2018

Spring Storms and Two Types of Backups

Spring is Finally Here!
We welcome the warmer temperatures. With the crazy winter we have had we are due for some nicer weather.

The spring warm up can also mean power problems from storms and overloads from starting up air conditioning that has not been run in many months. It seems like every spring we hear of prolonged power outages from some of our clients.

Power outages are hard on electronics. Abrupt outages, spikes, and returning power can lead to hardware failure and data loss.

Battery Backups

All electronics should be protected with surge suppressors at a minimum and important systems that need to remain powered at all times should be plugged into battery backups. Servers, switches, phone and internet equipment, and other crucial systems should all be shielded from power issues through the use of battery backups.

In the event of extended power outages, servers can and should be set up to gracefully shutdown to avoid data loss.

Power outages can cause lots of problems for electronic equipment but there are two that are most common. The first being spikes in power that can happen when power returns after an outage or when lightning strikes. Surge suppressors can protect against most spikes. The second problem, that most people do not know about, comes from “brownouts” which are times of reduced power. Brownouts can harm electronics more than spikes because they are at lower power levels and do not trip surge suppressors. Battery backups can protect against brownouts and should be used wherever critical systems are in use.

Now is a great time to test and confirm that battery backups are working. The useful life of most batteries is around 3 years in normal conditions. Battery backups that are properly sized for servers have lights on the front that should indicate when a battery needs replacing but should also be tested to ensure they have the capacity to keep the server running with enough time to shut them down gracefully if needed.

One more note about power outages: If you have to use a portable generator, do not plug servers or other sensitive equipment into them unless they are designed specifically for that purpose. Most consumer grade and smaller industrial generators provide power that is too “dirty” and not consistent enough to power electronics without damaging them.

Data Backups

Power issues can also spell disaster for data, specifically when power goes out during a time when data is being transmitted or in the process of saving. Power loss on a server holding data or on machines or equipment used for accessing data can corrupt it, making it unusable.

We think every day is a good day to check your data backups. You can never be too safe when it comes to ensuring your data is protected. Our backup service is monitored and maintained constantly, ensuring our client’s data is available and current in the event it is needed.

If you backup your own data, when was the last time you checked to make sure it was successful? Have you ever done a mock restore to make sure it can be restored if a loss occurs? If you don’t know the answers to these questions, you should call us to make sure your valuable data is safe.

Visit https://www.cnetsys.com/offsite-data-backup-for-michigan-businesses/ to learn more about our backup services.

For help with battery or data backups, call us at 586-816-0015.

03/20/2018

Proud to sponsor this wonderful organization again!

Address

7867 24 Mile Road
Shelby Township, MI
48316

Opening Hours

Monday	8am - 6pm
Tuesday	8am - 6pm
Wednesday	8am - 6pm
Thursday	8am - 6pm
Friday	8am - 6pm

Website

https://www.cnetsys.com/

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