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3 Ways to Safeguard Your Company From a Ransomware Attack

Ransomware attacks have been around for decades, and they continue to wreak havoc on systems around the world.

However, gone are the days when biologists spread the ransomware attack PC Cyborg through floppy disks to innocent victims. Attacks have gotten bigger and more dangerous; we are now all too familiar with attacks like Osiris, CryptoLocker, and WannaCry, which collectively infected hundreds of thousands of computers in over 100 countries, costing millions of dollars in damage.

Ransomware attacks continue to be an issue due to the continual development of new techniques for infecting systems. We have seen a major increase in occurrences over the last few years, resulting in the constant development of techniques used to safeguard systems against these intrusive attacks.

How Ransomware Works

This type of malware is extremely frustrating to deal with, given its intrusive and hostile nature. This software runs illegally on systems to block users from accessing their data until they pay a ransom to the hacker.

This type of illegal threat to data often presents itself through a type of Trojan that exploits security loopholes in web browsers. Ransomware is typically embedded in plug-ins or email attachments that can spread quickly throughout a system once it is inside.

In order to combat this devastating situation, IT experts recommend that companies develop and implement solid ransomware protection strategies. Strategies should aim to prevent data loss resulting from Trojans like CryptoLocker and others under development.

Although several IT security professionals believe companies can enable ransomware protection by using network shares, ransomware is quickly being developed to access network shares, exploiting vulnerabilities in these systems to access information.

How to Protect Your Company from Ransomware Attacks

There may be instances where criminals attempt to attack the backup software itself. That’s why it’s important to develop a robust self-defense mechanism for backing up your file contents and preventing criminals from disrupting system applications. Some steps you can take to protect your data are:

1. Back Up Your Data with the Cloud

It is crucial for companies to routinely back up their locally stored data in order to prevent loss in the case of an attack. Traditional methods of backing up data consume many storage resources, which can negatively impact a computer’s performance.

Backing up your data is now easier due to the reliability and resiliency of cloud storage. Cloud technology streamlines the backup process, giving you the ability to back up your information frequently and easily.

2. Implement Virus Protection Programs

Active Protection programs work several ways to prevent unauthorized activity on your computers. First, they are designed to monitor the Master Boot Record in Windows-based systems. These programs prevent any changes from being made within the system, which would otherwise prevent you from being able to properly boot up your computer.

Many ransomware programs copy files and place them in AppData and LocalAppData folders while masking themselves as standard processes within Windows. To combat this, these programs prevent applications within these folders from being launched.

Additionally, it’s crucial for you to keep your operating system and applications updated. Many ransomware programs are designed to exploit software vulnerabilities, which can be closed by installing patches and updates.

3. Stay Secure With Cloud Storage

Clouds are typically just as safe and secure as private servers, and they are equipped with elaborate access control and encryption technology that can be expanded to meet all of your storage needs. In addition to protecting your data against ransomware attacks, clouds also contain security to protect your files and information against DDoS attacks.

Despite minor shortcomings in cloud storage, they’re great at protecting businesses from ransomware attacks. Clouds present scalability that allows users to keep up with constant development of malware technology. Although the nature of an attack is unlikely to change, the delivery methods used will continue to develop, and cloud services will be there to adjust quickly and provide constant protection.

Is it worth investing in Disaster Recovery?

Investing upfront in the mitigation of potential disasters will save your company and network in the long run. In the world of reliable hosting, for example, each infrastructure deployment includes all kinds of high availability (HA) and disaster recovery (DR) solutions. Investing in HA and DR solutions upfront will enable business continuity, avoid a lot of stress, and save you from the potentially devastating recovery costs.

What is disaster recovery?

According to TechTarget, “disaster recovery is an area of security planning that aims to protect an organization from the effects of significant negative events. DR allows an organization to maintain or quickly resume mission-critical functions following a disaster.”

This means that implementing DR requires a different approach for every organization, as each organization has its own mission-critical functions. Typically, some mission-critical functions run on or rely on IT infrastructure. Therefore, it is good to look at DR within the context of this (hosted) infrastructure; however, it should be part of business continuity planning as a whole.

Important questions to ask when you plan and design your mission-critical hosting infrastructure include:

  • How much time am I prepared to have my mission-critical functions unavailable (RTO)?
  • How much data am I prepared to lose, i.e. the time duration for which you will not be able to recover your data (RPO). For example, if you safely backup your data once a day, you can lose up to one day of data when a disaster happens.
  • How much money will it cost the organization (per hour) when the mission-critical services are not available? DR measures include prevention, detection and correction.

Disaster recovery for common failures

Most hosting services include disaster recovery for most common failures such as failure of a physical disk, server, network switch, network uplink connection, or power feed. This is referred to as High Availability (HA).

A redundant setup solves failures as if an element fails, another infrastructure piece takes over. Redundant networking devices and cabling, multiple power feeds, seamless failover to battery power, and separate power generators that can run forever play an important role in keeping IT infrastructure and thus your software services up and running. Also in case of a fire in a data center, the fire is typically detected early and extinguished through gas (reduction of oxygen), without even affecting most equipment in the same data center hall. This means that most ‘disasters’ are being recovered without impacting the availability of the infrastructure services.

One of the most commonly used tools in DR is creating a frequent backup of your data. If a disaster occurs, you can then restore your backup and relaunch your mission-critical functions and other services.

For faster relaunch of your services after a disaster, replication of your application servers and data can come in handy, as it is readily available to relaunch, compared to backups that would first need to be restored (which takes more time).

Preparing for critical disasters

To mitigate risks of larger disasters which are much less likely to happen, an alternative IT infrastructure environment to run your mission-critical functions can help to enable your business continuity.

Some choose to backup critical data to another location. Others replicate application servers and data to another location, with available hosting infrastructure, to be able to relaunch application services quickly or to have a seamless failover without service interruption.

In case you need to mitigate the risk of failure of the entire environment, the common solution is to include a failover data center site in your IT infrastructure setup. Disaster recovery by means of adding an alternative data center (also called Twin DC setup) also requires a tailored approach to identify the right setup for your applications and mission-critical functions.

Another important facet is to implement applications that can deal with infrastructure failures. Where in the past it was more common to trust on the underlying infrastructure for high availability, it has become more popular to implement applications in such a way that underlying (cheaper) infrastructure may (and will) fail, without impacting the availability of the mission-critical functions.

This means finding a balance between investing in more reliable hosting infrastructure, applications that deal with failures in the underlying infrastructure, and planning and preparing failover to an alternative infrastructure environment.

Making optimal use of DR investments

To make optimal use of DR investments you can choose to use the extra resources in a second datacenter even when there is no failover due to a large disaster in the primary data center location. You can spread workloads between both data centers, for example with half of the workloads running in each data center A. During a disaster, non-mission-critical services can be stopped to make space for mission-critical services to failover.

Another example is when all applications run in the primary data center, and only those applications and data related to the mission-critical functions are replicated and fail over to a second data center in case of disaster (active-passive).

The main takeaways

As every business is different when carrying out business continuity planning every organization should have their own approach to disaster recovery. The challenge for these organizations is going to be balancing the tools and methods available. The goal, however, should be clear for everyone – invest upfront to prevent higher recovery costs in case of a disaster.

E-commerce: Your website and infrastructure can make or break your business

Running an E-commerce business is a daunting task, and trying to ensure its success is even more difficult due to the highly competitive world of digital marketing. Companies are tasked with determining what strategies will work best for their businesses and then need to be able to adapt to overcome various challenges to become successful. 

The importance of scaling 

To thrive as an E-commerce business, it is imperative to master the ability to increase traffic to your website. Successfully incorporating proper scaling into your e-commerce shop is a challenge many online store owners are unable to implement adequately. Having the ability to do so helps your store maintain loyal customers and acquire more new customers than the competition.    

Your website needs to be able to scale up to handle spikes in traffic which occur around busy shopping periods. The revenue from Black Friday 2018 was an astounding $6.2 billion, a 23.6% increase year over year. The revenue made from this day alone is a significant contributor to whether an E-commerce business has had a successful quarter or not – so you don’t want to miss out on any opportunities. It is important to make sure your website is functioning properly on these promotional occasions as there might be a lot of new website visitors who are having their first encounters with your brand, so you’ll want to make a good impression. Most website visitors will be looking to take advantage of the available promotions, so you’ll want to make sure this transactional process is as smooth as possible. I remember an occasion when I was shopping online, and I wasn’t able to complete a purchase because the systems were too busy. This resulted in me getting the item elsewhere, and driving a customer to a competitor is exactly what you don’t want as an e-commerce company.  

Visitor trust is important 

Establishing trust with online visitors is essential. Not everyone who visits your site will be set on making a purchase. Some users will be visiting for the first time and may be hesitant to make a purchase from an unfamiliar site. Establishing trust, even in tiny increments, is the key to keeping more customers at your site during the early stages of the buying cycle.   

A huge factor in gaining trust is having a system that works. If your customers leave due to busy systems or a slow-loading website, chances are those customers will not return, as they perceive you as an unreliable brand. A stable, well-performing e-commerce platform will give your customers a good experience, and they will happily return to purchase more. This means you need to support your website with infrastructure that performs well and can scale up to meet seasonal peak demands.  

One more trust factor is security. As an e-commerce company, your customers trust you with their personal and payment data. Making sure that data is kept safe is vital for your customers, employees, brand, and reputation in the industry. It pays to have measures in place to ensure your infrastructure is secure and monitored.   

Before you should ever consider a redesign for your site, it is important for you to analyze any potential defects in the existing conversion funnel. The lifeline of any e-commerce site can demonstrate what is causing a decrease in sales. You need to track down what is leading to the decline in sales and remedy the problem immediately in order to keep your business alive. There are several ways you can optimize your website to increase sales, and actually most of those have to do with the usability of your site, as well as the accessibility of your checkout and payment processes. If the shopping experience is tedious, your products are difficult to find, and paying for them is a hassle – your customers will go elsewhere.   

Four steps to a better customer experience  

  1. Begin by making sure your website runs properly

The website should load fast, allowing customers to view products and switch from product to product without any downtime. Long waits for pages to load often cause customers to abandon their carts to find websites that function better. Kissmetrics found that 40% of consumers abandon a website that takes more than 3 seconds to load.This means you need to ensure you run your website on infrastructure that can deliver the best possible latency, but can also bring the performance and scalability you need.  

  1. Ensure your website is easy to navigate

Visitors should be able to maneuver from product to product without any issues, and they should be able to locate what they are looking for easily. Customers need to have information easily accessible, as this will keep them happy and encourage them to buy more products and services from you.  

  1. Create a painless checkout process

Examine your existing checkout process. If you have a process that is overly complicated, requiring the customer to go through several steps just to place an order, chances are more customers will abandon carts instead of purchasing items they are interested in. Unexpected shipping costs, requiring customers to create accounts, security issues, and various other factors are leading culprits for abandoned carts. One often-forgotten aspect of the checkout process is the integration of your payment provider. If you have good connectivity, your checkout and payment processes will most probably run smoother, giving your customers a better experience. 

  1. Make security a top priority

If visitors do not feel safe using your website, they will not feel confident in providing their credit card or personal information to you in order to make a purchase. Make sure you choose a trusted hosting partner for your site. 

Trust and usability are key  

If you have an E-commerce aspect of your business, you need a quick and easy shopping and checkout process, and a dependable system supporting everything. Choosing the right type of infrastructure, supported with a set of services that keep things safe and speedy, can make a huge difference in the success of your e-commerce business. 

How to create a 3-2-1 backup system

Remind me, what is 3-2-1 backup? 

The 3-2-1 backup rule means that you should have 3 independent copies of your data – 2 of which are stored on-site for fast restore and 1 is stored off-site for recovery after a site disaster. There are many different ways to create this system, particularly when looking at the on-site options. It’s also worth noting that distinction between replica ‘ready-to-run’ copies and more traditional backup copies is becoming less and less clear, and the terms backup and replication are often used interchangeably. 

Backup vs. replication 

The onsite copy of your data can be a backup copy or a replica of the server you are protecting. The difference between backup and replication is that backup refers to copying files (or data blocks) to some external media, while replication is the creation and synchronization of an exact copy of the server in the native server format. 

A replica is ideal for direct spin-up, while a backup copy usually requires a restore process before it can spin-up. A major benefit of having a backup copy is it typically contains multiple restore points in time. You can go back to the state of the data one week ago or one month ago, for example. 

Designing your 3-2-1 backup combination 

At Leaseweb, there are a number of ready-to-use products which can be used to create a 3-2-1 backup of your server and data. See some examples combinations below.

IaaS Onsite original data Onsite copy Offsite copy 
Virtual Server Virtual Server  Acronis Cloud Backup 
Dedicated Server Dedicated Server other Dedicated Server Acronis Cloud Backup 
Private Cloud Apache Cloudstack Private Cloud Instance  Acronis Cloud Backup 
Private Cloud VMware vCloud Private Cloud VM Veeam Backup Acronis Cloud Backup 
Private Cloud VMware vSphere (single tenant) Private Cloud VM Veeam Backup Acronis Cloud Backup 
On-site storage 

For the original data storage, the infrastructure services are already equipped with redundant storage platforms that have high availability features. Dedicated Servers are typically ordered and delivered with multiple disks in a redundant RAID5/6 setup to protect against disk failure (failed disk hardware replacement included). 

For storing an onsite copy, a Dedicated Server can easily be setup with Private Networking to connect with a Dedicated ‘Backup Storage’ Server. You can choose any available OS feature (or run a software application of your choice) to manage the replication of the data. Examples are Linux DRBD (automatically replicates all data) and Linux rsync (manual file-based replication). For Leaseweb VMware platforms only, Leaseweb offers Veeam Backup which currently functions as a solution for onsite backup. This service does not require a software agent and comes with a self-service management portal. 

Off-site storage 

The offsite backup protects against a complete site disaster. Some backup providers give the option to test (or even run) the off-site backup copy directly within the offsite cloud environment, without the need to restore first to your onsite server infrastructure. 

The offsite copy solution is offered as an add-on self-service. This service is powered by the Acronis Cloud Backup software agent and a self-service management portal. 

Note, for advanced setups, some enterprise customers enable both fast restore and site disaster recovery in one through a twin data center setup, whereby an offsite/twin data center replica enables both fast restore and site disaster recovery. 

Wrapping up 

As you can see from the table above there are various ways to design a 3-2-1 backup using Dedicated Servers and Cloud services. Some companies employ an even more expansive backup strategy, using more than one off-site backup partner to create a 3-2-2 setup for example. There is no such thing as a perfect backup system but diversifying and having different options is only going to improve your chances of a smooth recovery from a disaster. 

15 Business Problems That Can Be Solved By Moving to the Cloud

According to a recent Intel Security report, 93 percent of a sample of 1,400 IT security professionals claim that they use some type of (hybrid) Public / Private cloud service for their business operations. The cloud is rapidly becoming a popular resource for businesses from all backgrounds, and for good reason.

If your organization hasn’t yet tapped into the power of the cloud, here are some detailed benefits of (hybrid) cloud computing technology that are worth considering.

1. Importance of data and where it is stored (GDPR)

Your business should have a clear concept of the value (and sensitive nature) of the data that is critical for operations. The inherent need to undertake efforts to assess risks and costs involved with current data storage practices is real (GDPR). Especially in an international business organization, deciding where to house data is a complex question that is largely determined by how that data will be utilized.

Many CIOs prefer to keep their companies’ data relatively nearby, and some of them will only work with companies that house data domestically. That is often difficult for large companies with offices in multiple locations, so it’s important to look at what you’re using your data for to decide where it should (legally) be stored.

Businesses have access to more data than ever, but storing it can be tricky. While some businesses choose to only store their data on local servers, using a hybrid approach (using both bare metal servers as well as cloud services) can provide a more flexible option for storing data.

2. Hosting

When you’re not sure where to host data, a cloud platform is a great way to minimize uncertainty. A hybrid cloud portfolio can support locally hosted options in either the UK or elsewhere in the EU, and cost-effective cloud options will help mitigate the risks associated with long-term investments or expensive migrations.

Global adoption of cloud is likely to increase.  In particular, companies can expect the demand for cloud computing to continue to rise in a post-Brexit Europe.  In the UK, Brexit will likely give a push for more locally stored privacy data.

3. Security

Cloud technology has advanced greatly and now it is actually more secure and reliable than traditional on premise solutions.  In fact, 64 percent of enterprises report that the cloud is more secure than their previous legacy systems, and 90 percent of businesses in the USA are currently utilizing a (hybrid) cloud infrastructure.

Many business owners who are accustomed to using local servers hesitate to transition to the cloud for fear of security risks. They worry that having their information “out there” on the cloud will make it more susceptible to hackers.

As scary as these fears are, however, they are unlikely to happen. In fact, your data is just as secure in the cloud as it is in bare metal servers. Because cloud hosting has become so popular, it has quickly progressed to the advanced stages of security. In other words, because so many businesses are using cloud hosting in some form, it has been forced to maintain high levels of security to meet all the demand.

 4. Vulnerability to disasters

If you’re only storing your data on local servers, you may be more susceptible to having your data affected by a natural disaster. Certain precautions may help alleviate this risk — such as backing up data, for example — but utilizing the cloud can provide even greater protection.

While the cloud is not without its risks — after all, the cloud is essentially a few servers united together on a software level — it does create another layer of protection in the event of a disaster.

Leaseweb provides access to our partners industry leading solutions, companies that specialize in these areas, so for backup solutions on Dedicated servers, VPS, Apache CloudStack we have partnered together with Acronis & to offer backup solutions for VMware & Private Cloud offerings, Leaseweb have partnered together with Veeam.

 5. Benefit for disaster recovery

Hosting systems and storing documents on the cloud provides a smart safeguard in case of an emergency. Man-made and natural disasters can damage equipment, shut off power and incapacitate critical IT functions. Supporting disaster recovery efforts is one of the important advantages of cloud computing for companies.

These improvements in security can also come with an attractive reduction in cost.

 6. Increased long-term costs

Not moving to the cloud could cost your company money in the long run. While you do need to pay for equipment with the cloud, costs are often more flexible because you can pay as you go depending on how much storage space you need, ‘On Demand’. Using this hybrid approach of combining cloud services and local dedicated servers, you can ensure you’re not paying for more storage than you need.

7. Boosts cost efficiency

Cloud computing reduces or eliminates the need for businesses to purchase equipment and build out and operate data centers. This presents a significant savings on hardware, facilities, utilities and other expenses required from traditional computing. Also, reducing the need for on-site servers, software and staff can trim the IT budget further.

8. Provides flexible pay options

Most cloud computing programs and applications, ranging from ERP and CRM to creativity and productivity suites use a subscription-based model. This allows businesses to scale up or down according to their needs and budget. It also eliminates the need for major upfront capital expenditures (OPEX vs CAPEX).

9. Architecture

For businesses wanting to take advantage of new services such as analytics, AI, and the possibility for secure collaboration outside the business premises, an opportunity lies in adopting a cloud architecture.  To CIOs, moving to the cloud is a chance to overcome previous internal limitations and improve their value proposition.

Because so much about Brexit remains up in the air, businesses will need to be prepared to adapt rapidly to whatever policies and regulations result from the move. Instead of undertaking a costly move to a more advantageous location, cloud adoption can provide the ideal solution to data storage and accessibility issues and is one of the most effective ways for IT leaders to prepare their companies.

10. Lack of flexibility

Businesses have historically been tethered to wherever their equipment is located, because that’s where they need to access all their information. This becomes a problem, though, when employees need to work outside the office because it may limit or eliminate their ability to work from home, meet with clients out in the field, or network away from their workspace.

With the cloud, however, users can bring their data with them wherever they go. The cloud not only makes businesses more flexible, but it allows them to use their personal devices to access this information if need be.

11. Promotes collaboration

It’s hard to collaborate when your partners are all over the map. If your employees are outside the office or your clients are not physically accessible, it can be difficult to work on the same task when everyone is limited to their own local workspace.

With the cloud, however, your business can use file-sharing applications to collaborate effectively, even if everyone is geographically separated. Clients, vendors, and employees can all work together in real time, making enhanced communication one of the best ways to combat the risks of not moving to the cloud.

 12. Increases mobility

One of the advantages of cloud computing for businesses is how easily team members can work from anywhere. This is particularly valuable in an era when employees desire flexibility in their schedules and work environment. Businesses that operate on the cloud can provide staff with options to work on the go or at home, from their desktops, laptops, smart phones and tablets.

 13. Reduced agility

The ability to scale up or down can be critical for a business to stay agile and competitive. While local servers may fit your needs now, what if you need to scale up as demand increases? By adding cloud services, you can add storage as you need it and pay as you go. This type of hybrid approach can adapt to your business’s needs quickly, making it easier to meet demand as your company grows.

14. Frequent disturbances

Disasters aren’t the only things putting your data at risk. Power outages, hardware problems, or general network issues can prevent you from getting your work done. Even disruptions like installing an update can cause downtime, which costs your business money. While these issues can affect the cloud as well as bare metal servers, a hybrid approach can help minimize these risks by backing up your data in multiple locations.

15. Limited technical support

Outside the cloud, your organization is limited to whoever is working inside your office. In the case of an emergency, you either have to hope your local professionals can get the job done or hire a third-party company to help, which could be costly.

This risk is reduced in the cloud because you’ll have the built-in support of experienced professionals, and you won’t have to rely on anyone with minimal experience.

Moving to the cloud may seem complicated at first, but the transition can help mitigate a series of long-term problems. The use of public and hybrid cloud services is becoming the new norm. In fact, the cloud services industry is expected to become a $411 billion industry by 2020 — up from $260 billion in 2017 — according to research from Gartner. By joining the crowd, your business can avoid some of its most pressing technological problems.

Mail Server 101: POP3 vs. IMAP

When it comes to technology, there are many things that many of us never stop to think about. Like how a microwave heats food so quickly. How in the world a Keurig works. Or the process by which email ends up on your phone, computer, or tablet each morning. Luckily, this post is here to dispel some of the mystery behind at least the last of these technological enigmas.

Email gets transmitted amongst and between servers and ends up in your inbox through one of two processes: POP3(Post Office Protocol version 3) or IMAP (Internet Messaging Access Protocol). While you may have seen either of these two terms before when setting up mail on a a new device, we’ll break down for you exactly what is happening with these two distinct actions.

POP3
POP3, which was the first of the two, downloads information from the server onto your personal computer and subsequently deletes the data from the server. Though this process is great at conserving space on your server, it makes it pretty difficult to access your data across multiple devices.

IMAP
Inversely, while IMAP requires significantly more disk space on your machine than POP3, this process also provides increased flexibility when it comes to accessing your email across devices. IMAP leaves information on the server and synchronizes read and unread messages, folders, and spam across any device in which you’d access your email.

While IMAP has emerged as the leading method for mail delivery, both processes have their advantages and disadvantages. Read more about IMAP vs. POP3 in our Knowledge Base.

Hosting 101: VPS vs Dedicated

When it comes to hosting, there are lots of acronyms and terms that get thrown around. However, when it comes to the ABC’s of web hosting, it’s important to understand the difference between VPS and dedicated hosting. In this post, we’ll break down these terms and explain how even you can become a hosting provider.

Everything on the internet exists on and amongst servers. Sometimes it’s multiple servers (cloud hosting), sometimes it’s a single machine, and sometimes, it’s a portion of a CPU. Hosting providers use these servers, and dashboards like cPanel & WHM, to provide a space for everyone on the internet to blog, game, post, create, and host all of the information that exists on the interwebs.

Dedicated

Dedicated hosting means that a hosting provider has access to a full computing machine in which they provide hosting. This is often a more secure and controlled hosting environment. However, because owning, renting, and maintaining a full machine, or several machines, can be costly and cumbersome, often times dedicated hosting is an option primarily sought out by enterprise-level hosting providers or companies managing large amounts of information.

VPS

VPS, or a virtual private server, is an allotted amount of space on a machine that a hosting provider can rent out to provide hosting to their clients. (Think of it like renting business space in a high-rise versus actually owning the building.) VPS is the most affordable of the two and is often the best start for companies, or individuals like you, to begin their web hosting business or add hosting to their current list of web offerings.

Building Communities with Social Media

According to Statista, over 3 billion people across the world are expected to have some form of social media account by 2021. That’s 1/3 of the population of the entire planet. While social media use in the business world has been around for the better part of a decade, it has recently become an integral part of growing communities and building brand recognition. Companies use social media as customer outreach, to announce a new product or service, or in the case of fast food chain Wendy’s, a chance to troll its customer base.

Just as people have their identities, both in-person and online, companies in the social media age are developing their own identity and messaging across the different platforms where their communities can be reached. So how do companies leverage social media to reach their communities?

Social What?

Social media is believed to have its beginnings in as early as the 1840s, with the advent of the Telegraph, a way for people to communicate with each other across long distances via the means of technology. Of course, the telegraph is a modified version of communication that humans have been using for thousands of years; whether humans used smoke signals, carrier pigeons, or maritime signal flags to communicate. Social media, or social networking, in its most recognizable state, is considered to have taken form in the 1990s, with the advent of platforms such as Geocities, IRC, Bulletin Board Systems, and AOL Instant Messenger. With the rise of mobile devices and an ever-evolving internet, platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Reddit, Slack, and Discord have connected communities in even faster and easier ways, especially without the tricky pigeon cleanup.

People desire a way to keep in touch with each other and share their experiences. Social media provides the means for people all over the world to discuss aspects of the communities they belong to, share experiences both positive and negative, and connect. Whether sharing pictures, having thought-provoking discussions, commiserating, or poking fun at each other through memes or gotcha videos, staying connected to fellow human beings has been essential to a global community.

Community: Bringing the Creators and Users Together

Communities traditionally have been described as a group of people coming together around a thing. This thing can be the location where that group lives, a belief system, a sports team, a band or musician, or even video games! If you are reading this, chances you are a user of the cPanel & WHM software or a company/developer/administrator that supports customers who use the software. You are part of the cPanel Community! 

cPanel understands the importance of being connected to the community at large that uses cPanel & WHM regularly as either a tool to build out their hosting platform or increase the efficacy of their business. For this reason, the cPanel Community Team was formed! So what exactly does the cPanel Community Team do?

1.) Connect Developers to End Users

As cPanel & WHM is an ever evolving platform, new features are constantly being added and improved, as well as obsolete and unneeded functions being removed or deprecated. cPanel strives to improve the user experience of the product at every facet. This means having conversations with the user base to understand what their wants and needs are. Through channels such as the Feature Request Site, our Slack, and Discord Channels, and our official Subreddit; the Community Team engages with cPanel users at large in whatever medium they choose!  

The goal we hope to achieve as a Community Team is to provide an avenue for the cPanel Community to talk directly to the company. Need some help finding instructions on how to do something? Have an idea for a new feature? Want to provide feedback for how successful or unsuccessful a new product or change in cPanel is? The Community Team is here to help! Our biggest strength is the ability to talk about cPanel (both product and company) and provide direction to a goal where needed. 

2.) Create Informative and Helpful Content

Through the cPanel Blog and the Newsfeed, the Community Team collaborates with various teams throughout the company to create articles either providing insights to a new product or feature, a breakdown on how a process works, a behind the scenes look at the day-to-day activities in the company, a recap of a conference the company attended, or more! As a team, we want to go above and beyond just providing wiki articles and how-to guides on using cPanel & WHM. By creating content that connects at any user level or experience, we’re able to provide context and explanation behind a process or feature and give community members a “look under the hood” at cPanel & WHM. You can see this content in action by following our various social channels, such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

3.) Bring the Community Together! Literally!

Another huge aspect of community building is going out and meeting people directly! cPanel attends several web hosting and other related field conferences throughout the world. Having in-person conversations with your community develops stronger relationships by humanizing what are normally digital interactions. Our goals are to attend these conferences and meet with partners and end users to hear their ideas and concerns. This year alone, the cPanel Community Team has attended CloudFest, Joomla Day, ConFab, RedHat Summit 2019, and more! 

In addition to attending these various conferences, there’s a little shindig cPanel throws every year to meet with our users. We hope to see you there!

Be where your Community is

In an industry such as ours, we are strengthened by our collective knowledge and experiences. It’s the reason resources like Stack Overflow exist! Charles Darwin once said, “It is the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) that those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.” The different social media platforms that exist offer a wide opportunity to be where your community is. The whole end goal of using the different platforms of social media is to connect, engage, interact with, and grow the community around you. This brings us back to where communities coalesce. As a software company, service provider, developer, or sys-admin, you can interact with and grow your community, improving the relationship and engagement with your community members, by increasing awareness of your brand and building your identity.

So where do I start?

If you’re interested in getting started building your communities, do it! Start by signing up for accounts on your favorite social media platforms and start networking, posting content (photos, blogs, tips, anything to engage users)! It’s crucial to make sure that your social media profiles match your branding and message (how you want to present yourself to the world). Starting with platforms you are comfortable with will give you an advantage in how to navigate and cultivate a following.

Don’t be afraid to try alternative platforms such as Twitch, where you can live stream videos to your audience, or Reddit, where millions of users a day meet to talk about anything from automotive repair, finances, to sports and television shows! In the words of the famous philosopher Yoda, “Do or do not. There is no try,”.

The Secret to an Original Site that Delivers Results

Ever wonder why companies like Apple or Amazon have such a cult following or why people love to use their sites as “inspiration” for their own website designs? I was one of these people back in my early days as a web designer. The first thing I’d do before starting a design project is look at these brands and try to emulate their look and feel. I made sure my designs were as clean and beautiful as theirs, and ensured that they were usable. However, it didn’t take me long to find that I didn’t quite get the same results. The difference was that I didn’t tailor my site for my own unique users. To get the results I was looking for, I needed to know how to improve the overall user experience (UX) for MY target audience.

What is UX anyway?

The key is to get them from point A to point B while also providing an enjoyable experience.

I hear people all the time using the words UI, usability, and UX interchangeably. While a good UI (user interface) and usability are important aspects of user experience, actual UX encompasses how a visitor or user perceives, interacts with, and experiences your product or service. Think about UI like a store’s layout and decor, but UX as the overall shopping experience.

Get to know your customer

There are things you might know right off the bat about your customers, but you’re only touching the surface until you uncover how your users are interacting with your website, what their frustrations are, and what motivates their decisions. And the best place to get this info — is directly from them!

Research does a website good

There are countless ways to conduct UX research and you might use different methods depending on the project. I usually start with gathering existing data. From there, I begin conducting user interviews, surveys, and user testing until I finally get to a place where I can start developing personas and creating a comprehensive mental model.

The goal of this process is to use the information gathered to provide solutions to users’ problems and address their needs while keeping them delighted and engaged. The key is to get them from point A to point B while also providing an enjoyable experience. Think about why you might be loyal to some brands and not others.

The holy grail of UX design: mental models
mental-model2
Source: Mental Models: Aligning Design Strategy with Human Behavior by Indi Young
From my experience, a mental model is the most useful tool for designing an original site that delivers results. A mental model illustrates how a person will likely apply past experience to a brand new situation.

Just to give you an idea of what our mental model diagram looked like when redesigning cpanel.com, the top half consisted of boxes that listed all of the user stories, behaviors, motivations, and frustrations that we discovered as part of our research. The bottom half provided the ways in which we planned to support or solve what was listed above. With this simple and easy-to-create diagram, we were able to come up with features and design solutions for the website without having to guess. To top it off, it didn’t take us several months to complete.

Experiment
While getting to know your users is essential to the success of your site’s design, the truth is that you’ll have to do some testing, measuring, and iterating before you get your site to its optimum performance. To help you get started, I’ve provided some handy links with information about UX research, mental models, and other UX tools so you can uncover the secret ingredient that will keep your users coming back for more.

http://www.smashingmagazine.com
http://52weeksofux.com/
http://boxesandarrows.com/
http://www.alistapart.com/
http://webdesign.tutsplus.com/

General Data Protection Regulation and cPanel

As the internet evolves — so do the policies that govern the way we store and share information. One of the latest policies to come into effect is the General Data Protection Regulation. This policy, also known as GDPR, comes out of the European Union and its goal is to protect certain types of personal information.  We began preparing just over a year ago for this regulation, which comes into effect May of 2018. Here are a few things we thought you should know.

What is the GDPR?

The European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, is a regulation that comes into effect May 25, 2018.  The GDPR regulates the collection, processing, transport, and use of personal information about individuals in Europe.

Where can I get more information about GDPR and my compliance obligations?

The GDPR itself is here.  The European Union has created an information portal here.  A number of companies provide consulting services that help with different aspects of your compliance process.  While cPanel doesn’t recommend any particular approach to GDPR compliance, your lawyer or regulatory advisor may be able to point you to resources that are helpful.

Why does GDPR apply to cPanel? 

GDPR applies to cPanel because our company has both direct and indirect European customers whose personal information may be collected or processed by us, or on our behalf.  It may also apply to companies who provide services to us to the extent we provide this data to them.  Although cPanel is a U.S. company, the GDPR applies to personal information about individuals in Europe regardless of whether that information is located in Europe or elsewhere.

How will cPanel comply with GDPR?

As of the end of January 2018, cPanel has completed a “data mapping” exercise designed to identify how cPanel collects, handles, and transfers European personal information that is subject to GDPR.  Based on this exercise, we have categorized data and are in the process of creating processes that will facilitate compliance with GDPR.  We have determined that:

  • We do not collect or process “sensitive” data that is subject to GDPR.
  • We do collect and/or process other personal information subject to GDPR.
  • We store some personal information subject to GDPR for set periods of time.
  • A small number of third parties may also process personal information subject to GDPR on our behalf.
  • Data subject to the GDPR that is stored by us may be stored outside the U.S. and Europe.

To facilitate GDPR compliance we are strengthening our data segregation and access policies, our breach response plan, and relationships with vendors who may handle data on our behalf, or on behalf of our customers.

To further provide information to customers and third parties, we anticipate rolling out a revision of our privacy policy in late March.  Our revised privacy policy will:

  • Provide detailed information about the types of data we collect or process
  • Include the reasons for that collection or processing
  • Set out the length of time we store the data
  • Indicate whether the data is accessed by third parties on our behalf

We also anticipate becoming Privacy Shield certified by the implementation date of the GDPR.

How does cPanel & WHM facilitate compliance with GDPR?

cPanel & WHM is intentionally a highly configurable software product.  Because every customer’s determination about what is required for it to become GDPR compliant is unique, there is not a particular way that our products create compliance with GDPR, or any other law or regulation.  We are committed to working with our customers and partners to understand how their compliance activities are facilitated by our products, and ways our products can help them reach compliance.

How can you get more information about cPanel’s GDPR compliance plans?

cPanel will be holding a GDPR compliance “meet up” at CloudFest.  The meet up will be held on 14 March at 15:00 at our booth (H15).  Members of our product, executive, and legal teams will be on hand to listen and provide answers to questions you may have about our corporate compliance efforts and how our products can facilitate your own compliance.