COVID-19 Update For Massachusetts Clients

Governor Charlie Baker has ordered all non-essential businesses to close, effective noon Tuesday, March 24. "Baker said non-essential businesses shall close their physical workplaces and facilities to all workers, customers, and the public." The governor also stated  "Everyone is advised to stay home and limit all unnecessary activities," while announcing that he and state health officials are issuing a stay at home advisory for the residents of Massachusetts. Both will remain in effect until April 7. Source: CBS

What does this mean for our clients? Businesses that provide essential services are exempt. Among the businesses that will remain open are grocery stores and businesses that support them, gas stations, pharmacies and all medical facilities, and manufacturers of medical equipment, pharmaceuticals, and restaurants. Governor Baker is expected to release a full list of businesses defined as essential later today. If your business does not fall under an essential category and you would like to get your office setup for remote working, please email us immediately. We have resources in place to allow us to continue to provide you with the level of service, responsiveness, and support you have come to expect from IES. We are considered an essential business and are available for you, even with these orders in effect. However, effective Monday, March 23 at 10pm, all IES agents will be working remotely to support our clients and will only be legally allowed to go onsite to provide support if your business falls under an essential category. As always, we are reachable using any of the following methods: Phone: 781-816-9437 Email: contactus@iesadvisors.com Live Chat: iesAdvisors.com (click the chat icon that appears in the lower right corner of every page)Request Remote Login Setup

Here are some cyber security tips you should know when working remotely.

One of the key preventative measures for the spread of COVID-19 is social distancing. Luckily, in this increasingly connected world we can continue our professional and private lives virtually. However, with huge increases in the number of people working remotely, it is vital that we also take care of our cyber "hygiene".

Awareness and preparedness are both vital - you'll want to be sure you have the following basics: 

• Secure wifi connection. Most wifi systems at home these days are correctly secured, but some older installations might not be. With an insecure connection, people in the near vicinity can snoop your traffic.
• Fully updated antivirus system in place.
• Up to date security software. Security tools such as privacy tools, add-ons for browsers etc need to be up to date. Patch levels should be regularly checked.
• Remember to back up periodically. All important files should be backed up regularly. In a worst case scenario, staff could fall foul of ransomware for instance. Then all is lost without a backup.
• Lock your screen if you work in a shared space. (You really should be avoiding co-working or shared spaces at this moment - social distancing is extremely important to slow down the spread of the virus).
• Make sure you are using a secure, encrypted connection to your work environment.

Things employers should do: 

• Provide initial and then regular feedback to staff on how to react in case of problems. Who to call, hours of service, emergency procedures and how they evolve.
• Give suitable priority to the support of remote access solutions. Employers should provide at least authentication and secure session capabilities (essentially encryption).
• Ensure adequate support in case of problems.
• Define a clear procedure to follow in case of a security breach.
• Consider restricting access to sensitive systems where it makes sense.

If you have any questions about these tips or need to setup remote login to your office, give us a call at 781-816-9437.

Coronavirus COVID-19 Readiness: Work from virtually anywhere, anytime.

Like you, we're monitoring the latest news about the Coronavirus. That's why we're doing all we can to make sure our staff is standing by to aid with all your technology needs. We want you to have confidence that you can contact us anytime. In the event of a government mandated quarantine, not much will change. You can still: •Call our office 24/7 at 781-816-9437 to reach a tech •Open a support ticket 24/7 at iesAdvisors.com/portal •Chat live instantly with a tech from 9am - 10pm Monday - Saturday via our website •Email contactus@iesadvisors.com for a same day response Thankfully we are able to service most of our customers' issues remotely via the Internet using the latest in technology.

Working Remotely One of the many services available to our clients is the ability to remote into your work computer from another location. Some clients are already utilizing this service. Best of all, there is one low yearly cost. Here’s what we need to know to setup your account: •The business owner or manager needs to authorize us to setup your remote access account. •The name of each computer you want to access remotely and who will access it. •Each user’s email address. (Once the accounts are setup, we send instructions on how to use the system via email). •A secure password for each user to access the portal. Click the button below to launch the request using your default email application. We’ll reach out to setup your remote access up ASAP!

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