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Telling your staff to "look for typos" doesn't protect them anymore.
A University of Missouri cybersecurity expert said this week that AI-written scams "no longer announce themselves with clumsy spelling." Phishing emails, texts, and even cloned voices now sound polished and believable. The FBI's latest internet crime report lists more than 22,000 AI-linked complaints and close to $900 million in losses.
For a small business, the most common setup is an urgent request that looks like it comes from someone you trust. It might be a "vendor" with new bank details, or the "owner" asking for gift cards or a verification code.
What still works:
• Treat urgency and secrecy as red flags, whatever the grammar looks like
• Verify payment or banking changes with a call to a number you already have, never the one in the message
• Use MFA, and passkeys where you can
• Agree on a call-back or code-word rule for any money request
These are process problems more than tech problems, so write the rule down and train on it.
Does your team have a verification rule for payment changes? Questions? Message us or call The Computer Guy NJ at (973) 402-2672.
#AI #CyberAwareness #Phishing #SmallBusiness #FraudPrevention
Microsoft's latest Copilot update is less about chat and more about AI that works in the background on its own.
According to the October roundup, Microsoft is previewing "Autopilot," an always-on Copilot agent with its own mailbox and files. Reusable "skills" are coming to Copilot Chat in November, and new data-loss-prevention controls in Purview can now cover Copilot. Microsoft calls these dates tentative.
There's also a billing change. Starting December 1, new Microsoft 365 Copilot Business licenses bought through partners will have usage-based billing turned on by default. That means extra AI use can be charged on top of the license. Microsoft first said this would start November 2 and has since pushed it back. The default limit is 4,000 Copilot Credits per user per month, and admins can change it.
For a small business, the risk is less about the AI itself and more about a bill nobody expected and data getting into places it shouldn't.
Our advice: before you add licenses, set spending limits, decide who can use the agents, and check which files Copilot can reach.
Is your team using Copilot yet, or still waiting? Questions? Message us or call The Computer Guy NJ at (973) 402-2672.
#Microsoft365 #Copilot #AI #SMB #ITStrategy
If your office files live on a Synology NAS, check its software version today.
Security researchers are tracking a ransomware strain called C3RB3R that has been encrypting Synology NAS devices since early October. It gets in through critical flaws in DSM, Synology's operating system, and it doesn't need a password to do it. Locked files get a ".L0CK3D" extension, and the attackers leave a ransom note behind.
Synology released the fix back in September, so the devices getting hit are mostly ones nobody updated. The ransomware also encrypts any backups stored on the same NAS. A backup that sits right next to the original is not a backup.
What we recommend:
• Update DSM now and turn on automatic updates
• Don't expose the NAS directly to the internet. Use a VPN for remote access
• Turn on 2FA and disable the default "admin" account
• Keep at least one backup copy off the device and disconnected
If you're not sure who's responsible for patching the box in your closet, that's worth sorting out this week.
Questions? Message us or call The Computer Guy NJ at (973) 402-2672.
#Cybersecurity #Ransomware #SmallBusiness #DataBackup #ManagedIT
