When setting the annual IT budget, a lot of businesses seem to lean on the old adage “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” That would at least explain why Microsoft’s Windows 7 operating system – which admittedly has been a reliable workhorse – still owns 35 percent of the market nearly 10 years after its release. Now that the Windows 7 End of Life (EOL) deadline is less than a year away, a lot of companies are suddenly realizing they need to act fast to ensure their computers are supported after January 15, 2020.

Everyone knows that change can be difficult. From minor things like always eating the same food to serious examples like staying at a bad job, our comfort zone makes it difficult to try new things – even when we know the change will be good for us in the long run. The same is true in the software industry, where companies increasingly are replacing the one-time-purchase license for their product with cloud-based subscriptions. And while some customers might prefer buying a box and keeping the installation CD on the shelf, the benefits users gain from subscriptions are driving the subscription revolution.  We thought we’d take a look at the differences between traditional one-time purchases (called perpetual licenses) and subscriptions, so you can decide which approach fits your company’s needs when looking at a solution.

We might only be a few days removed from World Backup Day 2019, but the idea that 65% of consumers confirmed they suffered data loss (as revealed in our annual survey of attitudes and habits about data protection) has been rolling around in my head ever since. After all, that’s nearly 30% more people who reported they or a family member lost data in 2018 – a significant jump. The fact we all use more data and we’re accessing that data on more devices makes it obvious that we’re also creating more opportunities to lose that data – so that increase is understandable. But we still can take steps to try to reduce the frequency of data loss despite the increase in volumes and devices. It seems now is a great time for a reminder about the steps needed to keep your data safe. The following five recommendations are designed to help you negotiate the modern risks to your data given today’s habits of data use and the ever-evolving threats that lurk online.

In 1966, Robert F. Kennedy delivered a speech that cited an ancient Chinese curse: “May [you] live in interesting times.” He continued, “Like it or not, we live in interesting times. They are times of danger and uncertainty, but they are also the most creative of any time in the history of mankind.” That measured perspective, simultaneously seeing the glass as half-empty and half-full, is a useful one to adopt when considering infrastructure vulnerabilities in 2019.