IT, MSP & MSSP Industry Notes for April 3rd 2022

Sponsored by

April 4th, 2022

Arcoa Group

Why partnering with ARCOA makes sense
Electronics Recycling is an important and profitable part of the IT asset lifecycle, but it can be overwhelming with all you already do, varying state regulations, and the limited resources at hand. That’s where ARCOA comes in. When you partner with ARCOA, you get all the benefits of a big company without any of the capital investment. We’ve been doing this since 1989 and have the expertise, certifications, and nationwide resources to get the most for all your clients’ retired IT assets. Plus, positioning your clients as environmental stewards not only elevates their appeal to consumers, it meets government requirements and avoids fines.

What partnering with ARCOA looks like
Our role is to make it easy for you to bring more value to your clients. We work with you to help stretch your clients’ IT budget by reducing the total cost of ownership of their electronics. We’re experts at identifying and implementing the solutions your clients need for the end-of-use remarketing, recovery, and recycling of their technology assets. The sooner you involve ARCOA, the sooner you and your clients.

Converge Technology Solutions Corp. To Acquire Interdynamix Systems

• Converge Technology Solutions Corp. announced it has signed definitive agreements to acquire Interdynamix (IDX)
• Converge a software-enabled IT & Cloud Solutions provider
• Interdynamix (IDX), a next-generation systems integrator

HP Inc. to Acquire Poly

• to acquire Poly (NYSE: POLY), a leading global provider of workplace collaboration solutions
• all-cash transaction for $40 per share, implying a total enterprise value of $3.3 billion, inclusive of Poly’s net debt
• acquisition accelerates HP’s strategy to create a more growth-oriented portfolio
• 75% of office workers are investing to improve their home setups to support new ways of working¹
• Currently, there are more than 90 million rooms, of which less than 10% have video capability²
• As a result, the office meeting room solutions segment is expected to triple by 2024³

Inspirage listed as a Representative Vendor in 2022 Gartner® Market Guide for Oracle ...

• announced that it has been identified as a Representative Vendor in the 2022 Gartner "Market Guide for Oracle Cloud Infrastructure Professional and Managed Services” report.”¹
• Inspirage delivers end-to-end transformational initiatives solving business-critical challenges

Hackers aim their sites at printers in Russia

• The infamous hacking group named “Anonymous” announced it is hacking into unsecured printers/MFPs in Russia
• Goal is to force the devices to print propaganda documents condemning the Russian attack on the country of Ukraine

HP has yet another security issue

Many IT magazines this past week published articles detailing a newly discovered set of security vulnerabilities in many HP printers and MFPs, including wide format

• 3 of the 4 vulnerabilities are rated “Critical” as they can lead to remote code executive (RCE)
• Models include Color LaserJet Pro/Enterprise/Managed/Flow, LaserJet Pro, PageWide Pro/Color/Enterprise/Flow/Managed, PageWide Pro and OfficeJet Pro, Scanjet, DeskJet, DesignJet, and PageWide XL
  o 250 different model numbers affected
• “Certain HP Print products and Digital Sending products may be vulnerable to potential remote code execution and buffer overflow with the use of Link-Local Multitask Name Resolution or LLMNR”
• HP claims to have patches available

Colocation services companies bank on hybrid IT

• Posted on Techtarget.com
• Colocation services providers, gearing up for growth
• Considering the following developments
  • Flexential, a provider of colocation, cloud and connectivity in Charlotte, N.C., last week disclosed plans to add 33 megawatts of data center development projects in 2022
  • DataBank, a colocation, connectivity and managed services provider based in Dallas, said it will expand its San Diego data center by 40,000 square feet

Computer chip supply issues?

Two companies in the country of Ukraine, Ingas Corp. of Mariupol and Cryoin Corp. of Odesa, refine most of the world’s neon gas

• Neon gas is a crucial raw material needed to operate precision lasers that etch silicone slabs into semiconductor computer chips, some of which are used in printers and MFPs
• Russian jets have heavily bombed both cities, and production has ground to a halt
• Flight restrictions out of Russia have also hampered shipping of palladium (another chip component), as Russia controls 40% of the market

Qlik Positioned in Leaders Quadrant of Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ - MarTech Series

• announced it is positioned by Gartner, Inc. in the Leaders quadrant of the 2022 Magic Quadrant for Analytics and Business Intelligence Platforms*
• marks the twelfth straight year of Qlik’s position in the Leaders quadrant

Toshiba shareholders reject plans

In Tokyo, Japan, shareholders overwhelmingly rejected Toshiba’s management’s proposal to split the
company into two public companies

• Instead, activist shareholders are demanding that Toshiba accept bids from private equity investment groups to sell entire company
• Reuters News Service is reporting that Toshiba may sell off its Elevator division to Otis Worldwide for potential selling price of $4 billion
  “analysts expect sales of some assets such as Toshiba Tec (printers and MFPs)”
• New CEO Taro Shimada stated “would consider various strategic options”

Toshiba Workplace Productivity Bundle Earns Gold

• Keypoint Intelligence recognizes Toshiba America Business Solutions' innovation and commitment to improving business performance
• presenting the Toshiba Workplace Productivity Bundle its Buyers Lab (BLI) Gold rating
• Workplace Productivity Bundle's capacity for digitizing, retrieving and automating documents
• Toshiba Workplace Productivity Bundle apps digitize volumes of paper documents, capture relevant business metadata, and deliver searchable files when scanning on Toshiba's e‑STUDIO™ multifunction printers (MFPs)

Hackers steal over $600 million from video game Axie Infinity's Ronin network

• latest crypto hack has targeted a gaming-focused blockchain network that supports the popular video game Axie Infinity
• Hackers made off with about $625 million worth of Ethereum and USDC
• Reported on cnn.com

StorPool Delivers Enhanced Offerings for Managed Services Providers

• announced enhanced offerings for Managed Services Providers (MSPs) looking to build efficient cloud platform
• enrichments offer MSPs the tools they need to build their own cloud infrastructures in order to run mission-critical workloads
• StorPool Storage is a primary storage platform designed for large-scale cloud infrastructure

TPx's UCx with Webex Recognized as 2022 INTERNET TELEPHONY Product of the Year

• announced its UCx with Webex solution received a 2022 INTERNET TELEPHONY Product of the Year Award by TMC
• 2022 INTERNET TELEPHONY Product of the Year winners will be featured in INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine online and on TMCnet
• TPx is a nationwide managed service provider
• INTERNET TELEPHONY has been the IP Communications Authority since 1998™

ePlus Enhances Its Managed Security Services Portfolio with Addition of Fortinet Solutions

• announced it has expanded its Managed Security Services portfolio to include proactive monitoring and management of an extended suite of Fortinet security and network architecture solutions
• supported solutions include FortiSwitch and FortiAP switching and wireless access points, FortiManager network management software, and FortiAnalyzer security fabric analytics and automation
• ePlus Security is a security technology advisor and integrator

Lock in on Cyber Security with ARCOA

• customer has a staggered refresh cycle, the value of the equipment can be issued in the form of a credit growing over time
• identifying assets that are usually passed over and often have significant value
• Will generate Environmental Impact Reports at no charge

CrowdStrike Achieves 100% Prevention in Fourth Round of MITRE Engenuity ATT&CK® Enterprise Evaluations

• announced its results from the fourth round of the MITRE Engenuity ATT&CK^® Enterprise Evaluations
• achieved 100% prevention with comprehensive visibility and actionable alerts
• This round of independent ATT&CK Evaluations for enterprise cybersecurity solutions emulated the WIZARD SPIDER and VOODOO BEAR (Sandworm Team) threat groups

Face to face selling still vital

Research published by Stellar Global

• In-person selling situations are 34 times more successful than those made over email
• Close rates form face-to-face = 57%
• 65% of customers would be more likely to buy a product/solution/service if receiving a demonstration
• Human brain is wired for connection and appreciation

Cybersecurity Notes

• Ransomware report published by SonicWall:
  • 6% of ransomware attacks are aimed at U.S.
  • 5 million hits last year, up 98%
  • Average of 2,170 ransomware attacks per customer
  • 20 attempts per second
• Griggsville-Perry Public School District of Illinois notified an unknown number of students that their info may have been exposed online after ransomware attack.
• Suggested selling prices of offering a cyber security audit from ConnectWise:
  • $100 for every router, server, switch and firewall
  • $25 per user/employee
• New York City Public Schools are notifying 820,000 current and former students that their info was exposed after a vendor, lluminate Education of California, was hit by cyber attack
  • Through it Skedula and PupilPath platforms
• The Wolf Creek Nuclear Plant in Kansas notified local citizens that hackers from Russia attempted to disrupt operations.
• Highmark Health, headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, notified 67,147 patients that their PHI was exposed after cyber attack.
• Chelan Douglas Health District of East Wenatchee, Washington, notified 109,000 patients that their PHI was exposed after ransomware attack.
• New Jersey Brain and Spine of Oradell, New Jersey notified 92,000 patients that their PHI was exposed after ransomware attack.
• Business email compromise attached are the most expensive form of hacking, according to a report from FBI:
  • Total of $2.4 billion in damages in 2021
  • Up from $1.8 billion in 2020
• 50 million patients in the U.S. had their PHI (protected health information) breached in 2021, according to report from Politico magazine.
  • 75% as a result of hacking
• Audrain Community Hospital and Callaway Community Hospital of Mexico, Missouri both notified an unknown number of patients that they suffered from an “IT outage”
• Brandon Livas, Royale Lassai & Ashley Green pleaded guilty to stealing PHI from a medical clinic in Metairie, Louisiana and selling it for profit.
• Wheeling Health Right of West Virginia notified an unknown number of patients that their PHI was exposed after cyber attack.
• 38,418 patients, including Major League Baseball players, were notified by Horizon Actuarial Services of Georgia that their info was exposed after ransomware attack.
• Central Indiana Orthopedics notified 83,705 patients that their PHI was exposed after ransomware attack.
• 1 million patients, including many National Basketball Association players, were notified by JDC Healthcare Management of Texas that their PHI may have been exposed after “malware incident”
• Microsoft Corp. admitted it was a target of Lapsus$ cyberattack, led by a 16 year old boy in England.