April Newsletter 2013

April 2013

What’s in April’s Newsletter:

·         ‘Microsoft Support Centre’ Scam

·         ITS Discount: Canon

·         Deal of the Month

·         Tech Tip of Month by Alandale Training

·         Earth Day: Electronic Recycling

·         This Month in Tech History

‘Microsoft Support Centre’ Scam

Although this scam has now been around for a couple years we’ve recently received some warnings about it and they even attempted to pull the wool over our very own Jason Davies’ eyes a few days ago.

Here’s how it works:

You’re innocently sitting around minding your own business when you receive a phone call from ‘Microsoft Support Centre’ that they have been alerted by Microsoft or your ISP that your computer is infected with viruses and that they are going to remotely repair your computer and install new antivirus. They ask you to allow them remote access to your computer through the internet and your credit card number to pay for the software and/or repair services. Frequently they will provide you with a number that they say is unique to your computer which they use for ‘identification’, this number is however NOT unique but is a way to convince you that they really are from Microsoft.

If you do receive a call from someone claiming to be from ‘Microsoft Support Centre’ under no circumstance should you allow them access to your computer, give them your credit card information, or go to any website that they direct you to.

If this has happened to you or someone you know here’s what you should do:

1)      If you gave anyone your credit card information call your credit card company and have the transaction reversed, then cancel that card and get a new one.

2)      Report what happened to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. Here are some other internet scams that are trending right now.

3)      If you suspect that your computer does in fact have a virus you can contact us at 604-484-4300

You can read more about this scam at The Guardian and at Microsoft.

ITS Discount: Canon

Do you need to upgrade or replace your office copier or MFP? Are you looking for a way to trim your printing costs? Our partners at Canon Business Solutions in Vancouver are offering ITS Consulting clients very competitive pricing on new equipment, including copiers, MFPs, printers, scanners, document management tools and more.

For your complimentary Print Assessment and Total Cost Analysis, contact Ben Champion: ben_champion@canada.canon.com or 604-296-8103

Deal of the Month:

Each month we will supply you with a product that we believe is a great deal and may suit your business or personal needs. This is an opportunity for you to save time and energy shopping around for what’s best at the best price, because we have done it for you!

23IN Widescreen LED Backlit LCD Monitor

Price: $209.99

*Tax and Shipping not included

If you are interested please contact the sales team at sales@itsmail.ca

Tech Tip of the Month:

Brought to you by Alandale Training a great resource online for tips and on-site computer training courses in Vancouver, BC. Visit their site at www.alandaletraining.com.

If you use Excel on a regular basis you will likely use the Currency, Percent and Comma buttons to format numbers.

You can also apply these formats using keyboard shortcuts:

Ctrl+Shift+$   Applies the Currency format ($12,345.00)

Ctrl+Shift+%  Applies the Percent format with no decimal places

Ctrl+Shift+!    Applies the Number format (12,345.00)

These keyboard shortcut may be quicker than using the mouse if you work with any of these formats a lot.

Note that Ctrl+Shift+~ applies the General number format, which effectively removes any number formatting, so $12,345.00 becomes 12345.

If you liked this tip click here to join the Alandale Training Mailing List to receive more great tech tips.

Earth Day: Electronic Recycling

ERA, the company that ITS uses for all of our electronic recycling, is having their annual Earth Day Round Up.

To Prepare

• Setup a secure drop off area at your office for IT equipment during the month of April.

•Notify all staff of this exciting initiative by hanging signs, sending emails & by using social media.

•Encourage participation from friends and family.

•Once all items have been collected gather your staff for a team picture and send it to alan@era.ca

•Finally, book your pick up through alan@era.ca.

*For this initiative there will be NO pickup fee for clients and a discount of 50% for non-clients when you have sent in your team photo and call/email to book your pickup!

If you have any questions or concerns please contact Alan Avdic, Donation Coordinator by email alan@era.ca  or phone 1-604-756-8861.

This Month in Tech History:

·         April 4^th, 1975: Bill Gates and Paul Allen form a partnership

·         April 27^th, 1981: The first personal computer mouse is introduced

·         April 28^th, 2003: Apple opens iTunes Store

Thanks for reading!

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