BlackCSI Blog

Leading MTSP Protects Small to Mid-Sized Businesses from Ransomware Attacks

HARRISBURG, PA – January 24, 2023 – BlackCSI, a leading managed technology ser-vices provider (MTSP), announced today that the company has launched a Ransomware-as-a-Service program designed to protect SMBs (small to mid-sized businesses) from the burgeoning cybercrime industry. While most business owners have been taught that cy-bercriminals are lone, rogue actors who wear a dark hoodie and crack passwords from a musty basement, the reality is that the industry has evolved far beyond this state and unfor-tunately, cybercrime has become a viable business model. Instead of a handful of isolated bad actors, cybercrime is now “big business” with entire technology ecosystems supporting the acceleration of this industry.

Leading Managed Technology Services Provider Helps Local Businesses Plan Ahead for Any Situation

HARRISBURG, PA – December 20, 2022 – BlackCSI, a leading managed technology ser-vices provider (MTSP), is protecting small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs) from cyberat-tacks by implementing incident response and disaster recovery plans. Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting SMBs over large corporations because stricter penalties and harsher regulations have forced larger organizations to fortify their networks from attack, whereas most SMBs try to overlook this threat from affecting their organization. Cybercriminals have responded by searching for the “low-hanging fruit,” which is underprepared SMBs that are far too busy and under resourced to develop a comprehensive IT cybersecurity defense strategy. BlackCSI has responded to this by developing comprehensive incident response and disaster recovery plans for its customers to ensure that they remain in business in event of a costly breach.

BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), is reminding business owners about the IRS Section 179 tax deduction which affords them accelerated depreciation on capital expenditures. Through this deduction businesses can depreciate 100 percent of the cost of eligible equipment bought or financed from September 27, 2017, through 2022 as long as the new equipment is put into service before December 31, 2022. Businesses can deduct up to $1,080,000 in qualifying equipment expenses on items including IT equipment, managed IT software, cybersecurity solutions, business equipment, and more. While BlackCSI specializes in office technology solutions, this section of the tax code is too important for business owners to overlook.

Leading MTSP Shares Why Email Is an Easy Way to Destroy A Company’s Network

HARRISBURG, PA – October 11, 2022 – BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), recently announced that they are protecting small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs) with their innovative new AI (Artificial Intelligence) anti-phishing technology which is designed to protect businesses from cyberattacks through the most prevalent tactic, email phishing. Phishing is the fraudulent practice of sending emails purporting to be from reputable companies in order to get individuals to reveal personal information, such as company data, passwords or credit card numbers.

Leading MTSP Shares How to Protect Businesses from Cybercrime

HARRISBURG, PA – September 23, 2022 – BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), is educating small to mid-sized business (SMB) owners on how they can protect their organizations from the crippling blow of a cyberattack with cybersecurity insurance. While cyberattacks have unfortunately grown in frequency and according to Inc.com, “60 percent of small businesses fold within 6 months of a cyberattack,” Cybersecurity insurance has become a vital component of any organization’s risk mitigation efforts because it can eliminate liability from any damages which occur as the result of a cyberattack. This includes ransom payments, regulatory fines, public relations costs to restore your reputation, employee/customer lawsuits and lost income as the result of a breach. With the median cost for cybersecurity insurance at $140/month, (this varies from company to company based on a wide array of factors), many businesses are opting to secure this type of insurance coverage because it allows them to continue running their businesses without incurring large capital expenditures, while providing them significant “peace of mind.” Meanwhile, they can allocate budget for IT and network security improvements, which can be spaced out over time, in a sustainable manner.

Leader in Managed Technology Services Increases Customer Profitability by Cost Justifying New Cloud Voice Solutions

HARRISBURG, PA – August 24, 2022 - BlackCSI, a leader in managed technology services, announced today the company has launched a campaign to educate their existing customers on a dilemma facing many growth-oriented business owners. It’s no secret that as technology continues to advance, antiquated phone systems become more obsolete each year. As time rolls on, lack of functionality becomes more pronounced, leaving business owners with outdated equipment that hinder productivity. As manufacturers move on to innovating and building better versions of their technology, business owners with older phone systems find a very tough time getting support, finding replacement parts and receiving maintenance. The greatest risk facing these businesses is that when the outdated phone system stops working, which is usually once every 5 years, this causes costly downtime because the whole office shuts down and usually takes days to get back up and running. Most business owners shudder to imagine what it would be like to have their office phones down and how expensive it would be to have a team doing nothing at the office.

Leading MTSP Improves Communication Among Region’s Businesses

HARRISBURG, PA – July 28 2022 - BlackCSI a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), recently announced that the company is proactively integrating business phone systems seamlessly into Microsoft Teams to boost collaboration, productivity and profitability. Microsoft Teams has now become the most widely used business collaboration platform across most industries. BlackCSI is helping businesses maximize their utilization of Microsoft Teams by combining it to a feature rich business VoIP solution. As result, the region’s businesses can leverage key applications including call controls, IVR, call handling, automatic call recording, reports, analytics, call queues, SMS, and fax capabilities in an enhanced secure environment with less downtime.

BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), announced today that the company is helping business securely manage their Apple devices, Mac OS, iPads and iPhones with a cloud-based managed IT services tool. 

BlackCSI a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP) is preparing organizations to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to reshape their businesses. With many businesses looking for cost-effective ways to increase productivity AI has emerged as an obvious solution. The driving factor behind this growth in interest is that AI is poised to revolutionize virtually every single industry because the applications it promises are endless. BlackCSI is leading small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs) through this technological terrain by teaching them how they can take advantage of this disruptive new technology to gain a sustainable competitive advantage and increased profitability over the long-run.

BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), recently shared that IT research and consulting firm, Gartner, states that “Worldwide IT spending is projected to total $4.5 trillion in 2022, an increase of 5.5% from 2021. The three largest subcategories of that $4.5 trillion forecast are enterprise software, IT devices and IT services, which will increase 13%, 15% and 11%, respectively. 

BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), is preparing small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs) to upgrade their operating systems to run on Windows 11, as it is the latest operating system to be released from Microsoft, which will inevitably become widely used across the business world. SMBs can download Windows 11 at no-cost and take advantage of this upgrade to empower collaboration, enhance productivity and strengthen cybersecurity within their organizations. However, in order to do so seamlessly, SMBs need to ensure that all devices in their company are compatible with the new software, otherwise this opportunity to increase productivity could backfire and turn into unnecessary downtime across departments. BlackCSI is encouraging SMBs to verify system compatibility across all devices, workstations, and systems to ensure that this transition is seamless.

HARRISBURG, PA – November 9, 2021 – BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider, announced today that the company is helping customers take advantage of a large tax-break for small to mid-sized businesses with Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 179. Section 179 of the IRS tax code allows businesses to deduct the purchase price of qualifying equipment and/or software purchased or leased during the tax year. Essentially, it’s an incentive created by the U.S. government to encourage businesses to buy new equipment such as technology and invest in their companies.

Leading Managed Technology Services Provider to Share Business Expertise and Technology Foresight with Organizations Throughout the U.S. and Canada

HARRISBURG, PA – October 12, 2021 – BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), was recently invited to speak at Technology Assurance Group’s 20^th Annual Convention in Dallas, Texas. Technology Assurance Group (TAG) is an organization of MTSPs representing over $700 million in products and services. TAG is inviting industry leaders to discuss the future of the industry, new technologies and best practices to empower small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs) to leverage technology to enhance productivity and increase profitability. The event is invitation-only and BlackCSI has been asked to share its expertise with the rest of the industry to keep MTSPs operating at their fullest potential. The event will take place at the Hyatt Regency on November 6-10, 2021.

BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), has increased their investments in an advanced cybersecurity technology to create additional layers of protection for their customers. BlackCSI is deploying a SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) alert technology to help its customers monitor, protect and manage their employees access on widely-used business applications like G Suite, Salesforce, Slack, Dropbox, Office 365 and Box. BlackCSI’s new SaaS alert technology monitors upwards of 35 different types of applications and gives SMBs real-time alerts and reporting capacities. Additionally, it automatically responds to issues which require attention before the customer has initiated any action.

BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), recently shared that their robust cybersecurity solutions have protected their customers from consistent, daily attacks on small to mid-sized businesses. Unfortunately, this is not the case for many IT companies that leverage other systems like Kaseya, an IT solutions software developer, that was compromised by hackers in July through a malicious software update that Kaseya unknowingly pushed out to SMBs. 

BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), recently shared that some of the nation’s largest corporations, like McDonalds, Adobe, eBay, Equifax, LinkedIn, Marriott, Target and Yahoo have all been affected by cybersecurity breaches. While many of these breaches have been widely publicized, they only represent a small fraction of the attempted cyberattacks, which the modern business owner now faces. As a result of these breaches, we are also beginning to see cybercriminals become more emboldened, targeting more critical infrastructure in an effort to demand heftier sums. 

Leading Managed Technology Services Provider Maximizes Employee Productivity As Businesses Transition to the New Normal

HARRISBURG, PA- May 21, 2021 – BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider, announced today the company is helping organizations transition out of the pandemic by migrating them into a hybrid workplace model with the latest in today’s advanced technology solutions. As restrictions begin to loosen, small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs) are looking for ways to bring staff back into the office, while simultaneously maintaining employee safety by utilizing a hybrid model that combines the best of in-person and remote work environments. One of the most significant challenges that businesses face when attempting to accomplish this is to ensure that all staff have the appropriate technologies to navigate in-person and remote environments seamlessly. While many business owners are uncertain which technologies are the best to utilize, BlackCSIis paving a path for SMBs to follow, so they can optimize employee productivity as the business world transitions into the next, “new normal”.

Leading Managed Technology Services Provider Shares How AI is Evolving SMB Defenses

HARRISBURG, PA – June 10, 2021 – BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider (MTSP), announced today that AI (artificial intelligence) is starting to play a key role in cybersecurity defense systems for small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs). BlackCSI protects the interests of its clients by remaining on the forefront of technology’s latest advancements and it is actively advising SMBs on the potentials that AI-integration promises for cybersecurity in the very near future. Most businesses are becoming aware of how prevalent phishing attempts, identity theft and ransomware attacks have become in recent years and BlackCSI is doing its part to help businesses put a stop to it, by sharing the technology industry’s response to more sophisticated attacks.

The recent news on the cyberattack against the Colonial Pipeline resulting in gas shortages along the east coast really got me thinking… “Are we really, still, not concerned about cybersecurity in 2021?” The cyberattack was in the form of ransomware which has now been around since the 1980’s when the first documented ransomware attack took place against the healthcare industry. I do not have to explain the cost involved in such an incident, you can see it firsthand and unfortunately, some of you have experienced it firsthand. As the years go on, the cost of a cybersecurity attack increases.

BlackCSI, a leading managed technology services provider, announced that the company is helping healthcare organizations protect patient data with the latest in cybersecure technology. Recent studies show startling statistics in the healthcare industry’s ability to safeguard patient records.