New Features on Microsoft Teams

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While people are staying home and practicing social distancing, remote work apps have stepped up to help people make the transition to working from home.

Microsoft Teams, a digital work space for businesses, is one of these apps. Teams is introducing new features to compete with Zoom, according to CRN.

Teams, which has been offering audio/video meetings, now also includes the following:

  • Custom backgrounds
  • An “end meeting” button

The following features are planned for a later release:

  • Gallery view for video calls
  • A “raise hand” feature which allows users to send a visual cue when they want to speak
  • Noise suppression

Other Teams features include group chats, instant messaging, and file sharing. Teams also has a more efficient screen sharing system from Zoom that doesn’t require users to share tabs and windows separately.

Yottability is offering calls through Teams for customers who sign up with a PBX (telephone system) plan. To learn more about Yottability’s Teams offerings, click here.

Cyber Attacks Increase During COVID-19 Crisis

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Cyber attacks and cyber threats have been on the rise as more and more people are working remotely during the coronavirus crisis, according to CNBC.

Many meetings and gatherings have moved to Zoom video calls, which have now been susceptible to attacks called “ZoomBombing.” These attacks hijack the screensharing feature to play graphic videos.

TechCrunch recommends the following safety measures to protect your Zoom calls:

  • Disable “Join Before Host” so only you have control of the call.
  • Disable “File Transfer” to prevent viruses.
  • Disable “Allow Removed Participants to Rejoin” to keep booted attendees out of the call.

Cybersecurity is important now more than ever. Businesses need to be protected from security breeches, and a good cybersecurity system provides a strong line of defense and works to prevent and take down cyber attacks.

Yottability is here to help protect and secure your data from cyber threats.

We provide firewall maintenance and support to block certain network traffic and prevent the spread of computer attacks. We also provide “anti” software, which prevents and destroys viruses and malware.

Windows 7 End of Life

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Windows 7 will be reaching its end of life phase on January 14, 2020, meaning “Microsoft will no longer provide security updates or support for PCs” running on all versions of Windows 7. (source)

Users must upgrade or replace their devices to transition to Windows 10 Pro or Windows 10 Home, which requires the following minimum specs according to Laptop Mag:

  • Processor: 1GHz process or faster
  • Memory: 1GB of RAM for a 32-bit installation and 2GB of RAM for a 64-bit installation
  • Hard Disk Space: Up to 20GB of space
  • Graphics Card: A screen with a resolution of 800 by 600 or higher, and a DirectX 9 graphics chip

In some cases, it is less expensive and more efficient to purchase a new machine than to upgrade a machine to have these specs.

Devices running on Windows 7 will still work after end of life, but they will be vulnerable to security threats, and Microsoft will provide no technical support, no software updates, and no security updates. It is the company’s way of moving all users over to Windows 10.

Keeping Windows 7 may also make devices more difficult to use because app developers may stop supporting it, according to Laptop Mag.

For more information regarding Windows 7 end of support specifically, visit the Microsoft end of support FAQ.

Yottability is filling up on appointments before January 14, 2020 for upgrades from Windows 7 to Windows 10. Contact us today at (818) 975-0058 or at customerservice@yottability.com to schedule an appointment.