You Should Be Asking Your IT Provider Every Quarter (But Probably Aren’t)
Ifyou’reonlytalkingtoyourITprovider whenyourenewyourcontract,you’redoing itwrong.
Technologyisn’ta“setitandforgetit”partof yourbusiness.It’sconstantlyevolving,andso arethethreatsthatcomewithit.That’swhy quarterlyITcheck-insarenonnegotiableif youwantyourbusinesstostayprotected, productiveandcompetitive.
Buthere’sthething: Most business owners don’t know what to ask.
Sotoday,we’regivingyouacheatsheet. ThesearethequestionsyourITprovider shouldbereadytoanswereverysinglequarter –notech-speak,novaguepromises,just straightanswersthatkeepyourbusiness runningsmoothly.
1. Are There Any Vulnerabilities We Need To Address Right Now?
Thisisn’tjustaboutcheckingboxes.
Ask:
Isourantivirusup-to-date? Arethereunpatchedsystems? Havewehadanynearmissesorred flagslately?
You’renotbeingparanoid–you’re beingprepared.
2.What’sTheStatusOfOur Backups?AndHaveYouTested ThemLately?
Backupsarelikeseatbelts:Youdon’tthink aboutthemuntilyoureally,reallyneedthem.
Ask:
Whenwasthelasttimeyoutesteda fullrestore?
Areweusingtherightbackupstrategy? Off-site?Cloud?Hybrid?
Arewebackinguptherightthings?
Iseverythingbeingbackedupand storedsecurely?
You’dbeshockedhowmanybusinessesthink they’rebackedupuntilthey’renot
3.AreAllEmployeesFollowing SecurityBestPractices?
Itonlytakesoneteammemberclicking thewronglinktobringthewhole networkdown
Ask:
Havetherebeenanyunusualloginsor riskybehavior?
Doweneedanotherroundof phishingtraining?
Areemployeesusingmultifactor authentication?
BonuspointsifyourITproviderbringsthis
upbeforeyouask.That’showyouknow they’rewatching.
4.HowHasOurNetwork PerformanceBeen?Anything SlowingUsDown?
Slowsystems=slowteams=lostproductivity (andmoney).
Ask:
Arethereanyrecurringperformanceissues? Areweoutgrowingourhardware orsoftware?
Isthereanythingwecanoptimizetospeed thingsup?
Evensmalltweakscanmakeabigdifference.
5.AreWeStillCompliantWith [HIPAA,PCI-DSS,GDPR,etc.]?
Regulationschange.Sodotherulesabouthow youstoreandprotectdata.
Ask:
Arewemeetingthestandardsfor ourindustry?
Haveanyrequirementschanged?
Doweneedtoupdatepolicies,softwareor training?
Finesfornoncompliancearen’tcheap.Stay aheadofthem.
6.WhatShouldWeBeBudgeting ForNextQuarter?
GoodITisproactive.
Ask:
Arethereanysoftwarelicensesexpiring? Anyequipmentnearingtheendofitslife? Anyupcomingprojectsweshouldbe planningfor?
Thishelpsyouavoidsurpriseexpensesandplan likeapro.
7.WhatTrendsInITOr CybersecurityAreWeBehindOn ThatAreMakingUsSlowerOr MoreVulnerable?
Technologydoesn’tstandstill–andneither docybercriminals.
Ask:
Aretherenewtoolsorbestpracticeswe’re notusingyet?
Arewelagginingbehindinanysecurity protocolsorperformancebenchmarks?
Whatareotherbusinessesoursizedoing thatwe’renot?
Arethereanyrisingthreatsthatweneedto bemorecautiousof?
Fallingbehindonemergingtrendsdoesn’tjust slowyoudown–itleavesyouexposed.Agreat ITpartnerwillkeepyouaheadofthecurve, notplayingcatch-up
YouAREN’THavingThese Conversations?RedFlag.
IfyourITproviderdoesn’thave clearanswerstothesequestions–orworse,iftheyaren’tofferingtomeet withyouquarterlyinthefirstplace–you mightnotbegettingthesupportyouneed
Technologychangesfast.Cyberthreats movefaster
Youneedsomeone whoisnotjustreacting whensomethingbreaks butactivelyworkingto preventthebreakinthe firstplace.
The3mostcommonwaysITservicescompanieschargefor theirservices,andtheprosandconsofeachapproach. AcommonbillingmodelthatputsALLTHERISKonyou,the customer,whenbuyingITservices;you'lllearnwhatitisand whyyouneedtoavoidagreeingtoit.
Exclusions,hiddenfeesandother"gotcha"clausesITcompanies putintheircontractsthatyouDON'Twanttoagreeto. Howtomakesureyouknowexactlywhatyou'regettingto avoiddisappointment,frustrationandaddedcostslateronthat youdidn'tanticipate.
21revealingquestionstoaskyourITsupportfirmBEFORE givingthemaccesstoyourcomputernetwork,e-mailanddata.
Yousetit.Youforgetit.Andjustlikethat, whileyou’repackingforvacation,yourinbox startsbroadcasting:
“I’moutoftheofficeuntil[date].Forurgent matters,contact[coworker’snameande-mail].”
Harmless,right?
Actually,cybercriminalslovetheseauto-replies. Thatsimplemessagegivesthemvaluableintel: yourname,title,whenyou’reunavailable,who tocontact,internalteamstructureand sometimeseventraveldetails.
Thisprovidestwomajoradvantages:
Timing–Theyknowyou’reunavailableand lesslikelytocatchsuspiciousactivity.
Targeting–Theyknowwhotoimpersonate andwhotoscam.
Thissetsthestageforaphishingorbusiness e-mailcompromise(BEC)attack.
HowItHappens:
Yourauto-replyissent. Ahackerimpersonatesyouoryour alternatecontact.
Theysendan“urgent”requestformoney, passwordsordocuments.
Acoworker,trustingthee-mail,complies. Youreturntodiscoverfraudorabreach.
Businesseswithtravelingexecutivesorsales teamsareespeciallyvulnerable.Adminsoften fieldmanyrequests,handlesensitivetasks tasksquicklyandmaytrustawell-crafted fakee-mail.
HowToProtectYourBusiness:
1.KeepItVague
Skipdetaileditineraries.Instead,say:“I’m currentlyoutoftheofficeandwillrepond whenIreturn.Forimmediateassistance, contactourmainofficeat[info].”
2.TrainYourTeam
Educatestaffnevertoactonurgent,sensitive requestsbasedsolelyone-mail.Alwaysverify throughanotherchannellikeaphonecall.
3.UseE-mailSecurityTools
Advancedfilters,anti-spoofingprotectionsand domainmonitoringreduceimpersonationrisks.
4.EnableMFAEverywhere
Multifactorauthenticationacrossallaccounts blockshackersevenifpasswordsare compromised.
5.PartnerWithAProactive ITProvider
Anexperiencedcybersecurityteamcandetect suspiciousactivityearlyandstopattacksbefore theycauseseriousdamage.
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“Since enrolling in Vector Choice's managed IT services program, we have experienced a significant increase in the protection of our client information Vector Choice continuously implements improvements to ensure our network remains secure Their team genuinely cares about our business's growth and adapts their services to keep up with our evolving needs If you're on the fence about choosing Vector Choice as your IT firm, I can confidently say that you get what you pay for. Their timely response and the wide range of knowledge their technicians possess are crucial in keeping our business running smoothly "
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THE HIDDEN COST OF WAITING
Why You Can’t Afford To Delay Your Windows 10 Upgrade
Ifyou’restillrunningWindows10onyour businessmachines,let’scuttothechase:The clockisticking.
OnOctober14,2025,Microsoftisofficially endingsupportforWindows10.Thatmeansno moresecuritypatches,nomorebugfixesandno moretechnicalsupport.
Buthere’swhatbusinessownersreallyneedto understand:Thecostofwaitingisn’tjustabout somedayneedingtoupgrade.
It’saboutwhatwaitingcouldcostyouin themeantime.
“We’ll Deal With It Later” Is An Expensive Strategy
Wegetit–upgradingeverymachinein yourbusinessisn’texactlyyourideaofafun budgetitem.Itfeelseasytodelay…until somethingbreaks.
Buthere’swhatprocrastinationactuallycosts:
1. You’re Operating Without A Safety Net
OnceMicrosoftdiscontinuesWindows10 updates,everynewvulnerabilitybecomes yourresponsibility.
Hackersloveoutdatedsystemsbecausethey’re easytargets.It’slikelockingthefrontdoorbut leavingthewindowswideopen.
Onebreachcouldcostyouthousands–orworse, yourentirebusiness.
2. Software And Hardware Compatibility Issues
Manybusinessapps,suchasaccountingtools, CRMsandindustry-specificplatforms,are
alreadyphasingoutsupportforWindows10
Ifyoursystemsstopworkingmid-projector crashduringaclientdemo,what’sthatworth?
Andit’snotjustsoftware.Newprinters, peripheralsandevensecuritytoolsmaystop playingnicelywithyouroutdatedOS
3. Lost Productivity
Outdatedsystemsareslower,theycrashmore frequentlyandtheyfrustrateyourteamEven smalllagsaddupovertime,draggingdown efficiency,moraleandyourabilitytocompete
Ifeveryemployeeloses10to15minutesaday totechhiccups,whatdoesthatcostyouover amonth?
4. Emergency Upgrades Are Always More Expensive
Waitinguntilyoursystemscrashoryourteamis lockedoutdoesn’tjustcreatestress–itcreates panic-spendmode:
Emergencyhardwareorders
RushITlaborfees
Businessinterruptionswhilemachines arereplaced
Alittleplanningnowsavesalotofscrambling–andmoney–later.
5. You’re Risking Compliance Violations
Ifyourbusinesshandlessensitivedataoris subjecttoregulations(HIPAA,PCI-DSS,etc), usingunsupportedsystemscouldresultinfines orlawsuitsManyregulatoryframeworksrequire up-to-datesecurity–Windows10won’tmeet thosestandardscomeOctober
What Smart Business Owners Are Doing Now
They’regettingaheadofthedeadline,notjust byupgradingdevices,butbyusingthis transitionto:
Auditwhatdevicesneedtogo
Streamlinetoolsandsoftware
Tightenupcybersecurityprotections
PlansmarterforITspendin2025
How To Make The Transition Easy
Here’swhatwerecommend:
Runacompatibilitycheck–Notallmachines canrunWindows11Findoutwhichonesneed tobereplaced.
Audit your apps –Makesureyouressential toolsarereadytorunonWindows11or newerenvironments
Budget for hardware now –Don’tget stuckinasupplychaincrunchlater
Partner with an IT provider –Wecan handlethetransitionfromstarttofinish–no downtime,nosurprises
Don’t Wait Until October To Panic
Waitinguntilthelastminutewillcostyoumore –inmoney,stressandmissedopportunityWe’re helpingsmallbusinessesmaketheupgradethe smart way:planned,smoothandoptimizedfor futuregrowth.
Booka FREE NetworkAssessmentandwe’ll helpyouidentifywhatneedsupgrading,what canstayandhowtobuildatransitionplanthat won’tdisruptyourbusinessbeforethedeadline.