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Disaster Recovery Testing in Your SME
Procesessor.com 07.18.2008
What needs to be done and when in case of an emergency? How often should a small to midsized enterprise update its disaster recovery plan? The answer is simple: every time it does a disaster recovery test. It is thus necessary to educate upper management about the importance of testing and what they stand to lose if they do not heed your warning. Then, tests should ensure that all users have connectivity for applications that are crucial to the different business areas, says Michael Croy, director of business continuity for Forsythe Technology

Assessing Fire Risk
Processor.com 05.30.2008
Many IT admins may think that they have a sound fire protection plan in place—until it’s too late. For example, do you really know what is at risk if a fire were to destroy your data center and how such a cataclysmic event would affect the entire enterprise? No data center is 100% fireproof, while many enterprises’ operations would come to a halt if the network were to go down. “At the end of the day, this is not about IT, it is about the business,” says Michael Croy, director of business continuity for Forsythe Technology.

PCI DSS Compliance: Web Application Firewall or Code Review?
SearchSecurity.com 05.21.2008
On June 30, Requirement 6.6 of the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard (DSS) -- whose goal is to ensure that Web-facing applications are protected against known attacks by either completing a code review or installing a Web application firewall (WAF) -- moves from a best practice to a requirement. In terms of meeting the June 30 deadline, security professionals say it is a mixed bag. Dale Masi, a PCI QSA and senior technical consultant at Forsythe Solutions Group in Skokie, IL., is in the process of working with two clients on PCI compliance.

How to Improve Disaster Recovery Plans
Computerworld.com 05.16.2008
CIOs are asking themselves what disaster recovery will do to improve business as a whole. Not only are CIOs adopting new disaster recovery technologies, "they are asking themselves what disaster recovery will do to improve business as a whole," says Michael Croy, director of business continuity solutions at Forsythe Solutions Group Inc.

Unified Threat Management, Demystified
CIO.com 03.24.2008
Considering unified threat management (UTM) appliances that combine many security jobs? Here's some advice from CIOs who've tried these all-in-wonders on for size. Security appliances are getting a lot of buzz and there's plenty of debate about the virtues of UTM versus a best of breed approach. But it's worth noting that any security appliance, whether multifunction or single function, comes with some caveats. "In general, appliances can not be virtualized," says Joel Pogar, director of security and network solutions with the Forsythe Solutions Group.

Stop! There Goes My Phone!
Information Week 02.11.2008
Do you have a security policy governing data access via mobile devices? Unless things have improved considerably since we asked readers this question last summer, it's even odds you don't. "The thing that concerns me is how easy it is to release malware to a mobile device. Something as simple as taking a BlackBerry and downloading a ring tone to it may be a potential vector," says David Brown of Forsythe Solutions Group, a technology consultant.

Mobile Devices Poke Holes in Security

Available in print only.
Secured Magazine 01.01.2008
Plugging the leaks requires recognizing the dangers, then applying a combination of technology and user education. Plug an MP3 player or USB drive into an office computer and you can scoop up and carry away all sorts of vital information, such as confidential reports and customer lists. “You never know what’s going to be loaded on or downloaded from these things,” says David Brown, a security consultant with Forsythe Solutions Group.

Gov. Schwarzenegger Shoots Down Data Breach Bill
Channel Web Network 10.17.2007
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's veto last week of a proposed data breach security law was the right move in the eyes of many solution providers. One troublesome aspect of AB 770 is that retailers would have been required to dispose of consumers' personal information within 90 days, as opposed to PCI, which simply says this should be done within a reasonable time frame, according to Pamela Fredericks, director of security advisory services at Forsythe Technology, Skokie, Ill.

Mobile Medicine: Technologies Boost Efficiency, But Demand Dose of Protocol
Registration required to access entire article.
The Business Journal 10.05.2007
The marvels of mobile technology are yielding significant efficiencies for medical professionals these days. "The quality of health care is based on the need to push information close to the patient. There's also the need to make sure the data is protected," says Clyde Hewitt, a principal consultant with Forsythe Solutions Group.

Plotting Security Strategy in a Virtual World
CRN.com 09.21.2007
The wave of hype around server virtualization technology has already receded as solution providers and their customers bury their heads in their SANs and work with mature and maturing technologies from VMware and several competitors. Paul Adamonis, director of security solutions at Forsythe Solutions Group, a Skokie, Ill.-based solution provider, agreed that it will take a major breech to bring security to the forefront.

Cyber Criminals Now Lurking in Social Networking Communities
CRN.com 09.17.2007
Social networking Websites are becoming favored targets for cyber criminals taking advantage of human nature and using increasingly sophisticated toolkits to seek financial gain, according to a study by security vendor Symantec. Paul Adamonis, director of security solutions for Forsythe Solutions Group, a Skokie, Ill.-based solution provider, said the multiple threats arising from this stolen information are potent.

Data Leakage: VARs Can’t Just Be Plumbers
CRN Tech 06.15.2007
Data leak prevention (DLP) goes beyond simply locking down key information. Paul Adamonis, director of security solutions, notes that “DLP projects over time have evolved to include both security and storage technologies. Data in motion still needs to be protected and kept from going out, but it’s increasingly being coupled with data classification initiatives and the need to identify who’s accessing what files at which point in time. DLP has become an all-encompassing policy around data classification and protection.”

It Pays To Be Prepared (TechWeb)
TechWeb 04.20.2007
What have insurers learned from the 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina disasters, and how have their business continuity/disaster recovery programs evolved as a result? Michael Croy, Forsythe Solutions Group business continuity/disaster recovery expert answers these questions and more.

It Pays To Be Prepared (Insurance & Technology)
Insurance & Technology 04.20.2007
Insurers are leveraging lessons learned from past disasters and technology such as data replication and virtualization to prepare both IT and employees for a disaster. Michael Croy, Forsythe Solutions Group business continuity/disaster recovery expert answers questions.

Continuity Planning 101: The Role of the Business Continuity Specialist
Internet Telephony 02.26.2007
An interview with Michael Croy, Director, Business Continuity Solutions, Forsythe Solutions Group, Inc. The adage, “you only have one opportunity to make a good first impression” is certainly true.

Employers Say Flu Shots for Workers Worth Cost
Amarillo Globe-News 02.25.2007
Michael Croy, director of business continuity and disaster recovery for Forsythe Solutions Group, said businesses spend a lot of money every year to offer free flu shots, install hand sanitizers and clean heating and air conditioning filters.

Servers Strain Under 4-Gig FC
ByteandSwitch.com 01.05.2007
Tim Arland, principal consultant for Forsythe Solutions points out in the latest Byte and Switch “Ask the Expert” feature, many server backplanes can’t keep up with a 4-Gbit/s FC HBA.

Study: Most Companies Unprepared for Disasters
Baseline  12.06.2006
The vast majority of senior IT and business professionals at large U.S. companies felt their companies were insufficiently prepared for a disaster, according to a study published by Forsythe Technology, a Skokie, IL-based technology and infrastructure solutions provider.

Private Sector Behind Curve on Pandemic Preparedness

Homeland Defense Week 12.05.2006
VIDEO: A recent survey of Fortune 1000 businesses by Forsythe Solutions Group paints a worrisome picture of pandemic an health crisis preparedness in the private sector. Dan Verton talks with the report’s author, Michael Croy, director of business continuity solutions at Forsythe. (Runtime: 13:24).

Crisis Plans Undercut

Wall Street & Technology 10.20.2006
U.S. companies have upgraded their infrastructures to ensure functionality in the event of a pandemic, but few are willing to increase IT budgets to cover the additional expenses, according to survey results from infrastructure solutions provider Forsythe Technology.

Forsythe, HP to Ally on Business Continuity, Disaster Recovery
CRN.com 09.19.2006
Michael Croy, director of business continuity, compares a company’s IT infrastructure to a Rubik’s cube in terms of how to handle disaster recovery issues, saying that solving for one side of the puzzle, such as network or storage or server optimization, leaves the other sides unsolved.

Few IT Pros Prepared for a Pandemic
eWeek.com 09.06.2006
Though 69 percent of senior IT and business professionals believe that there is a likelihood that a disaster or crisis will interrupt their business workflow over the next two years, 60 percent have not increased their budgets in preparation, finds a study released Sept. 6 by infrastructure solutions provider Forsythe Technology.

Business Continuity After Hurricane Katrina
Financial Executives International 05.17.2006
Michael Croy, director of business continuity solutions, discusses how last year's disasters have changed corporate thinking, and offers tips for becoming aware and prepared.

Planning for Continuity
Bank Systems & Technology 02.27.2006
Michael Croy, director of business continuity solutions, discusses the effects of last year's natural disasters on the banking industry. "These events forced banks industry wide to take a long, hard look at how effective their disaster recovery plans might have been in these instances," he says. "Damage [from Katrina] was so severe in certain regions that some banks couldn't bring up applications until January [2006]."

IT Pros: We Can’t Stop Every Threat
SearchSecurity.com 02.21.2006
"Organizations are putting in new systems and software all the time, and in the process they keep uncovering new vulnerabilities," said Pamela Fredericks, manager of security advisory services for security firm Forsythe Solutions Group, a unit of Skokie, IL-based Forsythe Technology Inc. The company recently asked more than 100 senior IT and data security professionals how confident they are in their security procedures.

Three Out of Four Say Business Security Has Improved
 02.21.2006
Nearly 30% of IT security pros say they have little or no confidence that their companies detected all data security beaches last year, according to a new survey. In addition, about 26% of survey respondents rated their current IT environments as more vulnerable than a year ago, according to the study of 100 senior IT and data security professionals by Forsythe Technology Inc., a vendor of IT infrastructure products and services.

Making the Business Case for Redundancy
Processor 01.06.2006
Michael Croy, director, business continuity solutions, suggests that IT leaders put the lack of redundancy in terms of business vulnerabilities. "The best way to beat this thing is to make sure that executives understand that this isn't an IT issue, it is a business issue .... The executives have a fiscal and fiduciary responsibility to ensure that they have the capability to withstand disaster," he says.

Headed for Disaster: Companies Lax in Recovery Planning
IT Compliance Institute 01.03.2006
Forsythe's director, business continuity solutions, Michael Croy, shares insight on how disaster recovery falls within the guidelines of compliance regulations such as Sarbanes-Oxley. "Sarbanes Oxley is all about financial controls," Croy states. If companies "lose the information in those controls, they might as well not have had them at all." Croy also discusses the sharpened focus on business continuity and disaster recovery in light of 2005's hurricanes.