Computer Support Network

Earlier this week Google encountered a service crash that affected over 150,000 people and left most of them without access to their email accounts. Google reported that the service outage only accounted for roughly .08% of their total user base but with an estimated 193 million users worldwide this still adds up to a shocking amount.

Of those who were hit by the outage most discovered that all of their personal correspondence and any files they had uploaded to Google cloud network had been deleted. Since Google has long promoted near unlimited storage space for its users the loss of information left many feeling violated and betrayed.

Google has made every effort to restore the lost data to its user base with a promise that all lost data would eventually be restored. While admirable this still brings up the concern of what if a more serious system crash occurs in the future that is not so easily recovered. As one of, if not the largest data cloud in the world Google has a heavy responsibility to safeguard its data network.

While Google has made good on this responsibility so far you should never leave the fate of your valued data in someone else’s hands. Preparedness in the case of disaster is the hallmark of a successful operations strategy and whether your data is personal or business related you should have a reliable backup solution. While it’s not recommended that Gmail be used for business operations even personal affects deserve to be protected.

- Richard Keene
IT Computer Support of New York
Design and Optimization Department

It’s no secret that Google is one of the primary leaders in the realm of social content sharing. Today Google took this one step further with Google Buzz, a Gmail integrated plug-in that allows you to post new information directly from within the email application.

So why should this matter to you? Social content sharing is one of the best ways to promote your business or product organically and can greatly improve your websites search engine optimization. What makes Google Buzz different from many of the other social content sharing platforms is that it works on a much more personal level. Content you wish to share is automatically distributed to people with whom you regularly exchange email messages. In addition to this you can make posts, updates and general content available to the global environment. The benefit of this is that people who have followed similar stores or shown general interest will receive information about your product or business without seeking it out.

Along with the applications standard functionality it also integrates with many other social content sharing services such as Twitter, Picasa, Flickr, and Google Reader. While Buzz is not the most important thing you can do to promote your services right now it can provide a boost in the right direction. If combined with an already strong Search Engine Optimization program you can expect nice boost from the collaboration. As it stands now Buzz is one of top Google applications to keep an eye on in 2010.

- Richard Keene
IT Computer Support of New York
Design and Optimization Department

The month of July stood out this year as having some of the most malicious Viruses in quite some time. Google, in association with virus and spam filtration program Postini reported that Virus Spam peaked on July 24th with nearly 10 million suspicious emails. Google, which has long kept a watchful eye on the online world, has taken a special interest in the prevention of Spam and Virus attacks for its proprietary email server, Gmail. Google’s Postini is actively tracking all potential attacks and any business that uses either Gmail or the Postini spam filter will benefit from their vigilance.

Google reports that the two largest threats in July came in the form of the CNN and UPS viruses. The UPS virus acted as a front for an attack. The email would contain a faux tracking link that when clicked on would bring you to a malicious download location. The CNN Virus had a similar ploy, replicating the look of a legitimate CNN newsletter. Within the newsletter were a number of actual CNN news articles but mixed in were links to malicious download locations.

When it comes to spam and virus protection common sense is the best defense. In this day and age most people know better than to click on attachments from unrecognized locations but the same applies to links within email. Most modern browsers offer the option to read a url link within an email before clicking on it. If the link looks suspicious then simply choose not to click on it. Links that contain an .exe should never be followed. Lastly be suspicious if you receive an email from a source you didn’t sign up for. All unrequested emails are now required to include a physical address and an option to remove you from the mailing list. If an email does not contain these things then it is likely from a suspicious source. If you use email intelligently then you should never fall victim to an email virus attack.

- Richard Keene
IT Computer Support of New York
Design and Optimization Department