As you might be aware from various news sources, there has been widespread reports of computers being hacked by ‘ransomware’. Ransomware is a virus that locks all the files on your PC and demands payment for your data to be released. According to many reports, the most common method of spreading this malware is currently through phishing emails and attachments. Often enough, we get asked the very legitimate questions: “Is my data secure with Phorest?” and “Where is it stored?” And although we don’t usually write news-related blog posts, we thought this was an opportunity to have a look at Phorest’s cloud storage and security.
Phorest’s Cloud Storage
The first and most important thing to note is that your Phorest data – clients, service history, financial history, etc. – is 100% safe.
Why? Phorest Salon Software is cloud-based. This means that no data is stored directly on your PC, but instead in highly secure storage facilities.
Your data is stored in multiple data centres to provide high availability and redundancy in case of data centre failure. We employ the services of Amazon Web Services who are the number one provider of Cloud Computing services. Regarding security, multi-factor authentication is used to secure data and access is restricted to personnel who strictly require access to manage our systems.
What About Ransomware? Is My Computer At Risk?
Though your Phorest Salon Software data is safe, this virus, however, can affect other information if you are running Windows XP or Windows 8 on your PC (Windows 7 and Windows 10 are not affected).
Related | Phorest Salon Software FAQ’s
Microsoft Windows
If you are running either of the versions listed below, you should download any updates from Microsoft immediately. You can download the updates directly from Microsoft here. You can also check for updates on your PC directly by following the instructions below.
- Windows XP –  Navigate to Windows Update by choosing Start→All Programs→Windows Update
- Windows 8 – Navigate to Windows Update by choosing Start→Type ‘Control Panel’→Windows Update
Phorest Clients: Important Note
You should make it a priority to update to Windows 10 as soon as possible as Windows XP is not secure. For this reason, please note that future updates on your Phorest system will no longer work on that version.  We will be using the most modern technologies that are not supported by legacy systems such as Windows XP.
Of course, if you are unsure about anything, please contact our support team. Please note that wait times for a response might be longer than usual due to heavy call volumes.
Thanks for reading,
#LetsGrow
