Comments for Talk Tech To Me - GFI Blog

Comment on The Top 20 Free File Management Tools for Sys Admins by Andrew Zammit Tabona

Andrew Zammit Tabona — Tue, 06 Aug 2013 14:24:30 +0000

Hi george,

Thanks for sharing. Total Commander is a great file management tool, but as far as I know unfortunately it is not free (you can try it for 30 days, following which you will have to purchase a license).

Comment on The Problem with Patching Is – Not Patching! by Jackie Wake

Jackie Wake — Tue, 06 Aug 2013 10:14:04 +0000

You raise some good points Craig…

In terms of best practice, we recommend checking for missing patches once per day, with deployment scheduled once per week, unless a patch is critical.

Of course, it always pays to be on the lookout for the most popular applications, as these are the ones most exploited – Microsoft patches, Java, Adobe Flash Player and Reader and major web browsers.

This is the best practice our tool, GFI Cloud supports

Comment on Is IT too Important to Be Trusted to IT Pros? by Deb Shinder

Deb Shinder — Mon, 05 Aug 2013 14:33:39 +0000

David, an additional case against licensing is that it’s normally done by individual states. Networks span state (and national) borders and that could create complicated jurisdictional issues.

That’s been the case with state laws in several states that require computer forensics examiners to be licensed: http://www.mttlrblog.org/2009/02/20/legal-issues-arising-from-new-requirements-for-licensing-of-computer-forensics-in-michigan/

Badly written statutes (and far too many end up that way after going through the amendment processes) could technically make it illegal for you to manage your own home network without getting a license, the same way some overly broad forensics licensing laws can be interpreted to prevent you from working on your own computer, as mentioned in that article.

Comment on Is IT too Important to Be Trusted to IT Pros? by Deb Shinder

Deb Shinder — Mon, 05 Aug 2013 14:29:23 +0000

Greg, I agree that training is often necessary to obtain the level of skill needed to do the job. IT is becoming more and more complex – and licensing would be more complex than it might seem due to the very questions you raised.

Would licensing laws stop the “amateurs” from working on computers and networks? My opinion is no, unless the penalties were draconian and it was aggressively enforced. One need only look at the widespread disregard for the copyright laws (where fines ARE severe but enforcement very spotty) to know that.

Comment on Top 10 Free System Troubleshooting Tools for SysAdmins by Andrew Zammit Tabona

Andrew Zammit Tabona — Mon, 05 Aug 2013 09:43:21 +0000

Hi Carry,

These troubleshooting tools are ideal for any sized business and generally speaking can be used by anyone. Admittedly, some are more complex than others and may require a deeper technical understanding, but if you know where the problem lies and what each tool does then I’m confident they will bring you closer to solving the issue being investigated. On top of all this, they’re free!

Comment on Top 10 Free System Troubleshooting Tools for SysAdmins by Carry

Carry — Sun, 04 Aug 2013 15:31:47 +0000

Are these tools good for small busineses which cann’t hire a sysadmin at all? i am trying to use the tool Anturis which have been developed to use for non-specialists, but what about your tools?

Comment on The 41 Dumbest Security Decisions by name

name — Sun, 04 Aug 2013 05:39:21 +0000

Jonathan, they don’t contradict each other at all. 18 states that you should use different passwords for different services.
20 is talking about spreading user credentials across multiple machines instead of having them on a central repo. Since you’re probably going to have just one company login, 18 does not apply to 20.

Comment on Is IT too Important to Be Trusted to IT Pros? by Greg G

Greg G — Sat, 03 Aug 2013 05:03:44 +0000

You raise some excellent points and I think that the need for training and certification is sometimes necessary. But licensing brings up a number of questions that need to be answered before any such program is enacted. What specific skills need to be measured and are these skills just on a written test or will hands on testing be required? Will there be different levels of licensing, l.e., apprentice, journeyman, master? How much training and/or experience will be required to be licensed? For how many specialties will licensing be available (their are more specializations than many people think)? Further, would this stop all the “trunk slammers”, kids next door, nephew who is very knowledgeable, etc. From working on computers, printers, networks, etc. Under penalty of law? Just a few thoughts on this subject.

Comment on The Problem with Patching Is – Not Patching! by Craig Kelly

Craig Kelly — Fri, 02 Aug 2013 16:45:05 +0000

Great article,

With patching I find the question is where do you draw the line? As you suggest new patches come out daily for some software components. Do you patch daily, monthly, 6 monthly? The answer I think is dependent on the infrastructure component / software itself, however it can be hard to get agreement for what these timescales should be. Particularly if a major issue is caused by a bug that would have been solved with the latest patch.

Thanks for the post, enjoyed reading it.

Comment on Is IT too Important to Be Trusted to IT Pros? by David Mitchell

David Mitchell — Fri, 02 Aug 2013 15:00:45 +0000

A license is nothing more than a revenue driver for the entity issuing the license. All doctors are licensed yet there are still physicians who do horrible jobs.

If I have a serious issue I want someone board certified.

I think the same applies to IT. A license really doesn’t mean good work or sound skills. It just means they registered with one entity or another. Certifications are a step up from that, but honestly, some of the brightest and most knowledgeable people in IT I have met hold no certifications. Those that do usually do so to warrant a bigger paycheck.

Will it happen? Maybe. Will it improve things? Doubtful.