A quickly spreading ransomware attack called “Petya” has affected more than 12,000 machines running older versions of MS Windows worldwide.  This new ransomware has hit high-profile targets in multiple countries, including the United States. While Petya has not infiltrated as many machines as ransomware WannaCry did in May, it is more dangerous and has the power to create more damage. Here is what you need to know about this potentially dangerous cyberattack and how to keep you and your organization safe.

The greatest strength of laptops, notebooks and tablets are also their greatest weakness – portability. It’s what makes these tools so useful for mobile professionals, but it is also what leaves them so vulnerable to theft. 

A major ransomware attack is currently spreading worldwide, impacting over 100 countries. This attack, called “WannaCry” affects Microsoft Windows systems by exploiting a vulnerability called EternalBlue. Microsoft provided a patch for this in March and you can learn more about it here at Microsoft's blog.

This week the world celebrates Earth Day – a holiday dedicated to the education and support of environmental issues and protection. What began as a way to raise public awareness of air and water pollution, has become the “largest secular civic event in the world” with more than one billion people involved in Earth Day activities. Earth Day is celebrated globally and sometimes extended into “Earth Week,” a full seven days of events focused on green awareness.

CRN®, a brand of The Channel Company, recently named Lantium, a Philadelphia IT consulting firm, to its 2017 Tech Elite list.  CRN’s annual list honors an exclusive group of North American IT solution providers that have earned the highest number of advanced technical certifications from leading technology vendors.

Self-healing BIOS, self-encrypting drives, and pre-boot authentication are just some of the leading-edge ways cybercriminals are illegally browsing, stealing, destroying or otherwise corrupting company and individuals’ private information.  As the daily news is chock full of headlines of the latest data breach, it is clear the cybersecurity industry is not going to see a decrease in budgetary spending anytime soon.

 We all like to think that the Internet is a safe place. Unfortunately email, social media, malicious websites, ransomware and advertisement pop-ups can all pose a threat. Having an antivirus program installed on your computer will help catch and get rid of harmful malware, but it might not catch everything — especially if not installed properly or updated with the latest definitions.

CRN®, a brand of The Channel Company, recently named Lantium (a Philadelphia IT consulting firm) to its 2017 Managed Service Provider (MSP) 500 list in the Pioneer 250 category. CRN’s annual list recognizes North American solution providers with cutting-edge approaches to delivering managed services.

The Social Innovations Journal Awards recognize and honor the region’s most passionate social innovators and entrepreneur leaders whose work and social impact is often missed.  These individuals quietly make our region a more inclusive, equitable and thriving community of innovation and opportunity for all residents.  Last week, Lantium had the privilege to sponsor, present and nominate at the Philadelphia Social Innovations Journal Awards -- a night to celebrate Philadelphia’s regional visionaries and how they are changing the social landscape in Greater Philadelphia.

It’s been a fantastic year for Lantium and we hope the same for all of you. With the holidays upon us, I wanted to take a moment to thank you for making 2016 such a success. We are excited to begin our 18th year of business in 2017 – which we could never have accomplished without our great staff and clientele.