Norco Technologies Blog

Running a Small Business? These Technologies Can Make a Big Difference

Running a small business isn’t easy—but the right technology can make it a lot smoother. From streamlining operations to improving customer service, digital tools offer big benefits. But with so many options out there, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed.

Instead of chasing every trendy app, focus on solutions that truly support your goals. Two of the biggest challenges SMBs face with cloud tech are managing costs and ensuring security. In fact, the 2023 State of the Cloud Report found that 47% of SMBs lack resources and expertise to use cloud tools effectively.

We can help you cut through the noise and choose tools that drive growth and ROI. Let’s look at a few technologies that can transform your business.

Is Your Small Business Protected from Cyberattacks?

Nearly 43% of cyberattacks target small businesses, many of which rely on weak or outdated security. One of the most effective and affordable ways to improve your protection is Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)—a simple upgrade that can make it much harder for hackers to access your systems. At Norco Tech, we help small businesses like yours implement MFA quickly and efficiently. Here's what you need to know.

The digital age has brought unparalleled convenience, but it has also opened the door to increasingly sophisticated cyber threats. As hackers become more creative, they’re no longer relying solely on weak passwords or phishing emails. Instead, they're exploiting lesser-known vulnerabilities to infiltrate personal and business accounts.

In this post, we’ll reveal seven surprising ways hackers gain access to your accounts—and how Norco Tech’s Cybersecurity Services can help keep you safe in this constantly evolving threat landscape.

Protect Your Business: Understanding and Preventing Password Spraying Attacks

Cybercriminals are constantly evolving their tactics—and one method that continues to grow in popularity is password spraying. Unlike traditional brute-force attacks that target a single account with multiple passwords, password spraying flips the script: it targets many accounts using one or a few common passwords. This approach helps hackers evade account lockout policies and fly under the radar.

For small businesses, where password hygiene may vary widely across employees, this type of attack presents a serious risk.

In this digital world, it's hard to keep track of all the storage space on your devices. It's easy for our devices to run out of room because we keep adding more photos, videos, documents, and files. Cloud storage is a convenient option because it lets people store their data online, which frees up space on their devices and lets them view files from anywhere. This post will talk about the best cloud storage services that can help you get more done online and save space on your devices.

It may seem like the file is gone for good when you delete it from your computer. However, the truth is more complicated than that. A deleted file doesn’t really disappear from your hard drive; it stays there until new data fills up the space it occupied.

This process might be hard to understand for people who don’t know much about how computers handle files. We’ll discuss what happens to deleted files, how to recover them, and why they might still be on your device.

Cyber Trust Mark

The Cyber Trust Mark is a new smart device label created by the US government to prove that a device is safe. Internet of Things (IOT) devices have risen in popularity recently. Devices like smart thermostats and baby monitors make our lives easier, but also open us up to cyber threats.

There were over 112 million IoT cyber attacks worldwide in 2022, and this number continues to grow. With an increase in AI-powered attacks, an 82% increase was expected in 2024. The United States created new standards to confirm a device is safe.

As a result, you may see a shield with the "U.S. Cyber Trust Mark" when device shopping. Let's take a look at what this means and how you can use this new feature next time you make a purchase.

What is Cyber Hygiene?

Cyber hygiene means the care you give to your online stuff. This includes keeping your devices and information clean and safe. Washing your hands stops germs. Good cyber behavior stops digital germs like viruses and hackers.

Many small businesses make the mistake of skipping policies. They feel that things don’t need to be so formal. They’ll just tell staff what’s expected when it comes up and think that’s good enough.But this way of thinking can cause issues for small and mid-sized business owners. Employees aren’t mind readers. Things that you think are obvious, might not be to them.

The world has gone digital. We see it everywhere people shop for goods and services. Cash, check, or debit used to be the norm. Now, there are payment wallets that people expect businesses to accept. They include things like Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal and more.

Small businesses need to keep pace with these new methods of payment. It’s essential to adapt to stay competitive. You can easily lose business if people can’t pay the way they like.

As a trusted managed IT service provider, we're here to help. Many of our clients are making the shift to cashless wallets. We’ll help you find solutions to ensure your business thrives in the cashless era. 

Did your company’s software system once seem sleek and nimble? But now it resembles a tangled web of shortcuts, patches, and workarounds. Welcome to the realm of technical debt. It’s a silent saboteur that accumulates over time, threatening your efficiency.

Artificial Intelligence is no longer a technology reserved for companies with big budgets. Today, small businesses can access AI tools that help in several ways. Such as streamlining operations, improving customer experiences, and boosting profits.

The rise of affordable AI solutions has opened the door for small businesses. They can leverage these powerful technologies without spending a fortune. This post will explore seven great examples of how to use AI to succeed in a competitive market.

The office landscape is undergoing a dramatic transformation. Gone are the days of sterile cubicles and monotonous routines. Today's smart offices are hubs of innovation. They’re designed to empower employees, optimize workflows, and foster collaboration.

This shift is driven by technology. Including smart features that seamlessly integrate into the physical workspace. But with so many options available, where do you begin?

Here are the top six smart office trends you should consider adopting. They can power productivity and boost employee satisfaction.

Gone are the days of paper-laden desks and rows of filing cabinets. The modern office is a hub of innovation. Technology plays a starring role in this transformation. The right tech tools can significantly boost your team's productivity. Including streamlining workflows and fostering collaboration.

Is your company leveraging technology as well as it could? Our blog dives into the ways technology fuels office productivity. We’ll explore the benefits and provide tips!

Your business can benefit a lot from working with an IT provider. However, you need to avoid several key mistakes when choosing your team.

Time spent on trying to figure out the technology you use in your small business can be costly. While doing that, you can’t focus on your business needs, which can then result in poor customer satisfaction. 

This is where IT providers come into play. This is where Norco Technologies comes into play!

Data is the lifeblood of modern businesses. It fuels insights, drives decision-making, and ultimately shapes your company's success. But in today's information age, data can quickly become overwhelming.

Scattered spreadsheets, siloed databases, and inconsistent formatting. All these create a data management nightmare. This hinders your ability to leverage this valuable asset.

Let this guide serve as your roadmap to data management success. We'll explore the challenges of poor data management. Then, outline best practices for improvement. Lastly, we’ll equip you with strategies to transform your company's data landscape. Read on to go from chaotic clutter to a well-organized, accessible source of truth.

Zero Trust security is rapidly transforming the cybersecurity landscape. It moves away from traditional perimeter-based security models. In this approach, every connection attempt is continuously verified before granting resource access.

56% of global organizations say adopting Zero Trust is a “Top” or “High” priority.

This approach offers significant security advantages. But the transition process presents several potential pitfalls. Running into these can harm a company’s cybersecurity efforts. We’ll explore these common roadblocks and provide guidance on navigating a successful Zero Trust security adoption journey.

Norco Technologies is proud to announce the launch of our new website at www.norcotech.com. The goal of the new website is to make it easier for our existing clients to submit and manage support requests, and provide more information about our services for prospective clients.

There is no question that a small business can benefit from technology, as has been proven time and time again. However, an issue can arise if a business bites off more than it can chew, so to speak, and ultimately creates a spike in costs. A responsible business owner will resist this temptation and prioritize the solutions they need over the ones they want - building profitability and generating capital needed to make other improvements.

In this blog, we’ll examine some of the implementations that can deliver a good return on investment to a small business.