Are You Taking An Expensive Gamble With Your Company’s IT Security?

Take This Quick Quiz To Find Out:

1. Is your Cyber Insurance company requiring verification to continue your coverage? Are they requiring multi-factor authentication and other layers to be in place or rates will significantly increase, or worse, cancel your policy?
2. Do you have VERIFIED daily backups of your data? Does your IT team prove backups are tested and show screenshots of backups actually working? Do you even know if this is being done?
3. Can your IT company/team produce a formal, written, multistep process for securing your network and RECOVERING from a ransomware attack? Ask to see it; even if you don’t fully understand it, the “tell” is if they can’t produce it or make excuses and try to dismiss your request.
4. Are your employees’ workstations and devices truly LOCKED DOWN to prevent them from downloading files and accessing applications that can compromise your network? If not, you’re at HIGH RISK for having an employee accidentally invite a hacker in.
5. Do you have a qualified third party auditing your IT company or team’s security protocols and systems? No one should proofread their own work – and you as the CEO should insist on this instead of just taking them at their word that everything is “fine.”
6. Are you *just* using antivirus software to secure your network? Antivirus is nearly obsolete and useless as a stand-alone defense against the sophisticated ransomware attacks happening now.

If you cannot confidently say “Yes” to these questions, or if you don’t know the answers, this letter is of critical importance to you.

From the Desk of:
Stephen Taylor
LeadingIT, CEO

Dear Fellow Entrepreneur,

As you can see, I’ve enclosed a poker chip with this letter. Why have I done that? Actually, there are two very important reasons:

1. I have something extremely important to tell you and I wanted to make sure this letter would catch your attention.
2. Since what I’m writing you about pertains to a “gamble” you’re taking with your company’s IT security, I thought this would be an appropriate “eye-catcher.” Here’s what this is about…

My name is Stephen Taylor, CEO of LeadingIT. We’re an IT support company located here in Chicagoland that provides outsourced IT services, support and cyber security solutions to small businesses like yours.

In the past few months, we’ve seen the most aggressive uptick in ransomware attacks on small businesses in our lifetime. I’m sure you’ve already heard the recent news stories about big companies getting hit – but what you might not know is that small businesses are getting ransomed more frequently, and the attacks are getting more aggressive and costly.

Based on what we’re seeing, it’s not a matter of “if” but WHEN you’ll experience a cyber-attack.

I don’t mean to frighten you, but to EDUCATE you and offer help so you are able to minimize the cost, downtime and damages rather than be caught completely unprepared and suffer substantial losses – which is why I’m writing you today and extending this offer…

Our Painless, Confidential CyberSCORE Will Uncover

The Ways Hackers Will Get Into Your Network.

For a limited time, we are offering our CyberSCORE to businesses in our area. This is confidential, entirely free and without obligation.

[icon type=”angle-double-right” size=”1x” color=”default”] This CyberSCORE will provide verification from a qualified third party on whether or not your current IT company is doing everything they should to keep your data and computer network SAFE from ransomware, hackers and cyber-attacks.

Here’s How It Works: We will have a brief, nontechnical conversation about your company’s IT security. We’ll ask you a few questions that you should easily be able to answer. Depending on what we discover, we can move to the next step, which is to conduct a quick, non-invasive, CONFIDENTIAL investigation of your computer network, backups and security protocols.

Your current IT company or team DOES NOT NEED TO KNOW we are conducting this assessment, or we can involve them. (The choice is yours, but we recommend NOT letting them know this inspection is happening so we can get a truer read of how secure you are. After all, the cybercriminals won’t tip you off that they’re about to hack you).

Your time investment is minimal: 33 minutes for the initial consultation and one hour in the second meeting to go over what we discover. When this CyberSCORE is complete, here’s what you will know:

• If your IT systems and data are truly secured from hackers, cybercriminals, ransomware and even sabotage by rogue employees.
• If your current backup would allow you to be up and running again fast if ransomware locked all your files – 99% of the computer networks we’ve reviewed failed this test.
• If you and your employees’ login credentials are being sold on the dark web right now and what to do about it (I can practically guarantee they are due to a recent 8.4 billion credentials being sold on the dark web. What we find will shock you).

If we find problems, we will tell you what they are and prepare a Security Action Plan, for free, on how to remediate the situation; and if you choose, we can assist you in its implementation.

After doing this for 10 years, I can practically guarantee I will find significant and preventable security loopholes in your network and problems with your backups. Like Sherlock Holmes, we never fail. If nothing else, our CyberSCORE is an easy and cheap (free) way to get a valid third party to verify your security and give you peace of mind.

“We’re Fine…”

“Nobody Wants To Hack US…”

It’s natural to want to insist, “Not in MY company,” or think, “That won’t happen to us.” You may think because you’re small or don’t have “anything a hacker would want,” you’re immune to these attacks – but ransomware attacks are growing at an alarming rate, and it’s happening to small businesses that INSISTED it wouldn’t happen to them.

According to Cloudwards.net, 51% of businesses surveyed reported being hit by ransomware in 2020, and this year the number is growing. Maybe you have already been hit and survived, which has left you feeling “safe.” But what you don’t realize is that you have identified yourself as a target THAT WILL PAY. It’s very likely they will come back to you, because to the hackers, you are a paying client – 68% of companies that have been hit WILL BE TARGETED AGAIN!

PenTest Magazine reported that the average business had to shell out $178,000 to a hacker group to get their data back – and that’s just for the ransom, NOT for the cost of downtime, emergency IT restoration costs, lost business, reputational damage and lost revenue from clients leaving and the enormous time and emotional toll it puts on you and your employees.

Yes, I’m Sure You Have An IT Company,

But Here’s How They Could Be Failing You

As a CEO myself, I understand that you have to delegate and trust, at some level, that your employees and vendors are doing the right thing – but it never hurts to validate that they are. Remember, it’s YOUR reputation, YOUR money, YOUR business that’s on the line. One mistake, one slip-up, even from a loyal and well-intentioned person, becomes YOUR nightmare.

How could they be failing to protect you?

The biggest reason is that they might not possess the expertise needed. Many IT pros know how to keep a computer network running but are completely out of their depth when it comes to dealing with the advanced cyber security threats we are RECENTLY seeing.

IMPORTANT: A little-known “secret” in the outsourced IT world is that many smaller IT shops don’t have the expertise or head count on staff to handle the sophisticated attacks going on. They won’t admit that to you, because NOBODY (particularly IT guys) likes to admit they are out of their depth.

Second, they may be “too busy” themselves to truly be proactive with your account – or maybe they don’t want to admit the security solutions they sold you have become OUTDATED and inadequate compared to far superior solutions available today.

If you talk to CEOs who have been hacked or compromised, all of them say they thought their IT team “had things covered.” That’s why you need a preemptive, independent risk assessment like the one I’m offering in this letter.

Why Free?

Two reasons. First, we want to do everything we can to protect other small business owners in our area against these cyber-scumbags who steal from honest, hardworking business owners like us without repercussions. WE have to stand together as Americans to stop this from happening.

Second, we would prize the opportunity to be your IT company. But we want to EARN your trust by demonstrating our expertise and providing value in advance. Again, I want to stress that this free Risk Assessment comes with no strings attached, no “hard sell” and no tricks.

Please…Do NOT Just Shrug This Off

(What To Do Now)

I know you are extremely busy and there is enormous temptation to discard this, shrug it off, worry about it “later” or dismiss it altogether. That is, undoubtedly, the easy choice…but the easy choice is rarely the RIGHT choice.

Here’s how to request your FREE CyberSCORE:

• Go online to: https://www.goleadingit.com/cyberscore/
• Call me direct at (847) 499-1065
• E-mail me direct with questions: stephen@goleadingit.com

Dedicated to your peace of mind,

Stephen Taylor, CEO
LeadingIT