Category: Product

Microsoft Operator Connect from Vox – optimised unified communications for the South African market

Posted on by Andrew King

Vox has announced the launch of its Microsoft Operator Connect offering, enabling business customers to make and receive telephone calls within the Microsoft Teams application.  By adding voice calling, Microsoft Teams presents organisations of all sizes with a complete, integrated unified communications and collaboration platform.

In simple terms, by subscribing to Operator Connect from Vox, organisations can easily equip every Microsoft Teams user with a telephone number, enabling these users to receive telephone calls within Teams and to make calls from Teams to anyone that has a phone number.  And because it is cloud-based, users only require a Teams-enabled, and appropriately licensed computer or smart device, significantly saving costs and facilitating faster deployment times.

As one of the first South African Telco’s to be approved by Microsoft to provide the service, Vox can enhance organisational productivity and maximise the return on investment that organisations have already made in their Teams environments.

“With Operator Connect, organisations can retain their existing phone numbers and gain access to a fully managed, cloud phone system with zero hardware footprint. With Microsoft Teams, and Vox’s locally hosted and managed cloud SBC infrastructure, employees can benefit from the collaboration tools and global voice services that help them stay connected and productive in a distributed working environment,” says Andrew King, Head of Division: Voice, Visual Comms & Gaming at Vox.

The customer journey starts within the Teams Admin Centre, empowering organisations to request and rapidly deploy voice services throughout their operational footprint.  By selecting Vox as a preferred telco operator from within the Teams Admin Centre, an organisation can completely replace all existing PBX infrastructure with a cloud-hosted phone system, which is essential when designing and supporting a hybrid work environment.

“Vox has been providing the South African market with Teams voice calling for the past two years by way of a multi-tenanted Direct Routing offering called TeamsVoice – Operator Connect now supports a closer alignment between Microsoft Teams and Vox with joint service level management and enhanced integrations between the two companies. This sees a completely granular pairing of the Vox Voice network with the Teams environment,” adds King.

Operator Connect is the ideal calling option for Teams users who want to choose their own telco operator, customise their voice services, reduce hardware expenses, improve the quality of their voice services and lessen the burden of technical support.

“In this new hybrid world of work, workspace no longer stops at the office and leaders need to consider how to equip all employees with the tools they need to contribute – whether they’re working from home, in the office or on the go.

“Technology has a key role to play to make this hybrid environment work for everyone. Vox is well-established in the South African market and provides the agility that Microsoft is looking for in a local partner,” says Colin Erasmus, Director of Modern Workplace and Security at Microsoft South Africa.

Add to this Vox’s proprietary last mile Quality of Service that provides digital voice quality that is far superior to any other service available in the market today.

“Vox has completed the rigorous Microsoft testing requirements of its infrastructure to provide companies with the peace of mind that the infrastructure is vetted to the highest world-class quality standards. Microsoft Operator Connect is the ultimate unified communications solution for the modern workplace,” concludes King.

Let’s talk Vox Weather…

Posted on by Suhail Dinat

Let’s talk about the weather…

Doesn’t sound inspiring, but we promise it’s a lot more interesting than you think. We know, we know, the thought of the weatherman elicits feelings of Evan Almighty, or a throwback to the SABC theme music while Simon with the glasses lets you know about rainfall. True, it may be a throwback to a bygone era, but for many, the novelty is soon replaced by the quicker, more accessible app on your phone available at the click of the button. The thought of listening to a human being speak about things to come is probably as enticing as another ‘family meeting’ reminding us to mask up and get our vaccine (as if we haven’t already heard it 1000 times), while wishing the presenter had a 2x speed option.

But what if it didn’t need to be?

There were probably many who, upon hearing about the Vox Weather channel launch, thought this wasn’t the greatest idea. 50 000 followers in six months later, and we ourselves are surprised at the speed, popularity and growth of our channel – and it warms our heart (pun intended) to know that we’re not the only ones who miss the good ol’ days.

It doesn’t hurt that our key presenter (and face of Vox Weather) is no old bag of wind (again, pun intended) either, but rather the charismatic, bubbly, and lively qualified meteorologist Annette Botha. A woman who embodies the term passion, Annette combines her in-depth knowledge of the elements with experience, exuberance, and an infectious desire to make people smile, instantly captivating her audience and allowing them to immerse themselves in a truly educational experience. A brief chat with Annette is all it takes to help us understand that, in fact, there’s far more to the weather than how hot or cold it’s going to be tomorrow. Instead, there’s literal science behind the theory, which guides informed decisions capable of informing, educating, and preparing an entire nation – and this, we think, is worth the price of admission alone.

Rather than get caught up in the boring stuff, Vox Weather takes the unique approach of focusing on the human first, and the content second.

By adding a real-life, real-world presenter who, in her own words, understands her ability to spread happiness and joy across the country, we’re able to break through an automated, digitised world to give people the connection they require (after all, who does connectivity better than Vox?).

We’ve said out with the new, and in with the old-school, presenting our information in bite-sized, easy to digest daily installments; providing shareable, watchable, and presentable content to our ever-expanding audience of loyal fans. There is a twist, however. Whilst for many, watching the weather is (or used to be) a quick in-and-out, 10 minutes then done experience, we’ve managed to successfully turn it into must-watch programming. It wasn’t easy, but through a combination of consistency, delivery, accessibility, and quality, we’ve managed to hone our craft and create a series of humble, positive, and engaging content.

So, what’s on the horizon?

Well, Annette herself would probably know better than us, but our key focus at Vox Weather is diversity and expanding our reach to make the weather accessible to a wider audience. We aim to incorporate team members with fresh ideas, a different perspective and an equally infectious energy, so as to make what we do even more popular than it already is. We realise that South Africa is the only country in the world to boast 11 official languages, so our aim is to inch towards speaking to our people in a way that resonates with them. Also, if Annette gets her way, we’ll be flying into the eye of a hurricane – but hopefully one quite far away from South Africa.

Truth be told, it’s been an eventful journey full of milestones, growth and fulfilled potential – but we’ve enjoyed every minute of it. Much like the weather, one can never be too sure what the future holds, but we’re committed to expanding, engaging and doing our part to bring edutainment to everyone.

 

What’s the Deal with Qwerti?

Posted on by Suhail Dinat

Did you know that 90% of tech problems can be solved by turning your problem device off and on again? Yup, we’ve seen TV’s, PC’s, Routers (and even cars!) fixed purely by restarting, letting it cool down, or a combination of both. Unless, of course, there’s a deadline to meet or important Email to send, in which case not even the ghost of PC’s past can resurrect your obstinate machine.

Stubborn as a donkey? Please. The 2022 version should be “stubborn as a Windows Update that just won’t finish”.

Truth be told, a competent IT Support Team can handle most minor to medium PC issues (although every company insists that their IT Department can’t distinguish a mouse from a modem). However, with Hybrid and Home workspaces, most people don’t exactly have support staff playing COD in the next room waiting to save the day. Sure, you can bring your machine to work, but this involves time, admin, headaches, and hours lost – not to mention a fair bit of banging your head against a wall.

But what is it about PC’s that make them so frustrating? Firstly, let’s look at all the struggles anyone with a computer has faced at some point:

  1. Your PC doesn’t want to Bamba.

You know the drill. All is well the night before; you oversleep by a few minutes, and you’re frantically trying to slip into your morning meeting before your boss notices. Low and behold – the PC doesn’t start. Like an unwanted guest or a Jehovah’s witness with a point to prove, it strikes when you don’t expect it and doesn’t leave without a fight.

Plug in the charger. Unplug the charger. Close the screen. Hold down the power button. Take out the battery. Smash it against a wall – nothing works until much, much later, after several hours of panic and a very loud scream which sent your cat running in the opposite direction.

  1. The screen is blacker than Sauron’s soul.

You can hear the buzzing and see the red power button yet, like a living monument to Eskom, there’s no life in sight. Try as you might, the screen won’t co-operate. You beg, you plead, you pray to the ancestors and throw last night’s chicken bones – but this is a battle you don’t look like winning any time soon.

  1. Your PC sings the song of its people.

As we type this, our personal laptop is emitting a sound somewhere between the frequency of a plane taking off and Susan Boyle stepping on a Lego. We don’t know the cause, the source or the eventual outcome, but every morning we’re serenaded by what we can only imagine is the traditional mating cry of the Lenovo Y570. It’s loud, it’s frustrating, and we’re pretty sure it’s something expensive – but many people don’t know where to even start once their PC begins singing.

  1. It’s slower than Cyril getting to the point

You click a button, then click again – nothing happens. Soon, your fingers sound like they’re speaking Xhosa, as in your desperation you pound every key, letter and number on your keyboard just waiting for a response. Then, when all hope is lost, everything works at once faster than a speeding bullet. Victory? Not quite. By the time you click back, the moment is lost, and you’re back in the endless loop that is an unresponsive PC.

  1. Blue screen of death.

Lastly, we bring to you the nightmare before the Google search – the Blue Screen of Death. Chances are you’ve seen it, you’ve heard of it or you’ve felt it’s warm embrace – this machine-ending destroyer is the closest thing to Slenderman we can think of. Most PC’s flirt with it a few times in their lifetimes but, when it comes, it comes – and from that point on, you can count your machine amongst the lost souls of our time.

As you can see, owning a PC isn’t without its share of challenges. Growing up, we wondered why our primary and high school IT classes always had a side room full of old monitors. Today? We fully understand the pain. But what does this have to do with Vox, Qwerti or Home IT Support in general?

Well…

It’s well documented (particularly by us) that maintaining your machine (and sanity) is no mean feat. We’ve all felt the struggles, and a quick Google search yields more results for PC resolution questions than Pamela Anderson in her heyday. Like we mentioned above, today’s workforce is more flexible and less reliant on conventional office spaces which, while amazing for those of us who like working in our tighty whiteys, becomes a problem when your PC acts up.

Enter Home IT Support, which brings skilled technicians to you at the click of a button. PC Humming? Dial it in. Windows keeps crashing? Let our experts take a look. We can offer a wide range of solutions to both common and uncommon problems between 7am and 9pm during workdays. You don’t even need to pay for hours you don’t use – just the time spent with technicians. Our decades of experience and technical know-how have enabled us to create this value-added service. All you need do is install a simple desktop icon and treat it like a Bat Signal.

The best part? At only R29 a month, you can enjoy access to our technicians and know that help is only one button (and half a freak out) away.

Understanding What the Fibre is an ISP (and why exactly do we need it?)

Posted on by Suhail Dinat

The universal rule of being a South African is that if we can’t see what it does and it never works, it’s either Eskom, Home Affairs, or an Internet Service Provider.

Sometimes, it feels like every time a Fibre line drops somewhere in China, our Twitter feed becomes more expletive laden than Johnny Depp and Amber Heard on an average Wednesday. We get it, there are few things more frustrating than slow Internet or a connection which keeps on buffering. Many of our users immediately blame Vox (to be fair, why wouldn’t they – we have ONE JOB, right?), and sometimes question our usefulness. We try not to take it personally, but sometimes it can sting – so here’s our two cents as to why we’re kind of useful, as well as how you can say “whoosa” until the Internet is back up.

But first, what is an ISP and why do we need it?

An Internet Service Provider (or ISP) is the term used for a company which provides customers with Internet access. As opposed to back in the day, when Telkom ruled the world and dinosaurs roamed their head office, there are now an abundance of options for the end user to choose from. Some will fill your head with promises of affordable, reliable connectivity and leave you out in the Rain. Others desire to Host Africa, but their brand identity alone is a red flag.

Whenever you hear someone complaining about their ‘provider’ (which is more common than a Polo driving at 60 in the fast lane), chances are they’re fighting with one of our fellow ISP’s. In its simplest form, however, any ISP is effectively your main gateway to connectivity and internet connection – unless of course you’re stealing your neighbours Wi-Fi password.

Your Service Provider is the company that allows your home devices to connect to the Internet in the first place.

See, you can have a shiny new gaming laptop with all the trimmings, built-in modem and even a router, but without an ISP subscription, you’ll have as much Internet connectivity as SAA has capital. We facilitate the process of getting you connected; from connecting you to a Fibre line, to providing you with your router, making sure your internet is fully functional, ensuring that we deliver what we’ve been paid for and more.

That being said, we’ve all been there, and we’ve all felt the pain of innocently working from home when your Wi-Fi cuts without warning. You’re on a roll, the words are spreading like butter on hot toast, and suddenly everything drops like City Power took over our server room. Or, even worse, you’re at the climax of your favourite series (which hopefully has a better ending than ‘Lost”) and you suddenly start rainbow wheeling.

Insert panic attack and add a few expletives along the way.

Whether we’re honest about it or not, Internet makes the world go around – and many of us can feel a bit alienated once our connectivity stops playing ball. Short of disconnecting the router repeatedly and hoping something changes, there’s not much we can do when the signal drops – and this feeling of powerlessness only compounds our frustration. It’s a strange reality, but we’ve become so accustomed to being ‘plugged in’ to our interconnected world that even a minute’s separation can be anxiety inducing – especially when you NEED to be online.

Stress not, however, because there are in fact ways to stay productive even if you’re offline. Be it in the office, at home, or on the road, here are a few ways to stay sane while disconnected (maybe save this in your screenshot folder – just in case).

  1. Master the art of working offline.

Aside from a little research on the web and an Emailed submission for proofing, 90% of this article was in fact written independently of the Internet. Most projects, unless using digital software, can actually be completed without being connected. We’re not saying it’s ideal, but in the event of your Internet going AWOL, a handy way to stay productive is to identify projects you can complete on your own and get them out the way – picking up the rest once the grey dinosaur goes away (we promise that rhyme was coincidental).

 

  1. Do a ‘brain dump’

This one is for the creatives. It can be difficult to find time in our busy lives for creativity exercises that seem “extra” — like a brain dump. But those times when the internet isn’t there to distract you can be the perfect excuse to dig into your subconscious and let that creativity flow freely.

What exactly is a brain dump, you ask? Simple: Open up a new document on your computer or even a good ol’ notebook, and start writing down anything that’s on your mind. You can do a focused brain dump where you pick a specific topic and run with it, or a general brain dump where you literally write down anything that’s on your mind and see where it leads you. Don’t worry if your ideas are all over the place — that’s the whole point. Just let it out. No structure necessary.

Once you reach a good breaking point, look at what you’ve written and see if you can start to group your thoughts together by category, and pick out which ideas could be actionable. Then, you can start prioritising them, making a to-do list, and thinking about executions.

  1. Talk to people

Yup, basic humanity 101 – have actual, real-life conversations. Those moments of undisturbed, un-connected bliss may be your best chance of getting your team to spit out some amazing ideas. Any brainstorming session is bound to be disturbed by an Email, a vibrating phone, or that guy who needs to prove to the office that he can take calls on his watch – and this doesn’t even cover virtual meetings.

Getting your team in a room without the looming threat of a disruptive notification might sound like a scene from ‘Mad Men’, but it’s the foundation upon which great ideas were built. You know how they say there’s no school like the old school? In this case, there’s no conversation like real conversation.

  1. Enjoy it.

Yes, being disconnected is frustrating, but have you ever gone on a trip somewhere and noticed how much more you enjoy life when there’s no signal? Sometimes, you need to look away from your screen to see how much of life is passing us by. Read a book. Practice your Photoshop skills. Make yourself a good lunch. Take a coffee break on the balcony and watch the passing cars. There are an infinite number of small moments you can use to make a big impact. Remember, a minute wasted doing nothing is a minute you could have spent enjoying something – so rather than scream at your Twitter and hope your device connects, take a minute to enjoy having a minute.

ADSL is dead, long live fibre

Posted on by Navisha Naidoo

By Navisha Naidoo, Product Manager: ADSL and FTTH at Vox

Having served its purpose in ushering in high-speed internet access in South Africa, ADSL has now reached the end of its life. The technology is outdated and, typical of copper-based commodities, is susceptible to the vagaries of copper theft. In fact, the infrastructure provider of the country’s copper network has completely stopped the replacement of copper cables if they are stolen. Fear not though, for fibre is here to save the day.

It is understandable that those who have come to rely on ADSL may fear the unknown. After all, the ADSL model has become part of the furniture in many households throughout the country. And, just as people have moved on from relying on those Nokia handsets that were as sturdy as bricks, they also need to embrace fibre as the next iteration in the evolution of terrestrial broadband connectivity. Within three years, ADSL will simply not be available at all and, as such, it is best to move to fibre now – before it is too late.

Apart from what has already been mentioned about the downsides of remaining on the deteriorating copper network, the quality of service attainable from fibre-based connectivity must be considered. Comparatively, ADSL is unreliable in terms of speed and performance. It is highly probable though that, on a fibre connection, a minimum of 90% of the advertised product speed is achieved.

It is often perceived that fibre is more expensive or is difficult to use when compared to the familiarity of ADSL, but this is not the case. There is this handy table that examines the pricing of ADSL and fibre on a per megabyte basis. Roughly translated, this means you can get much faster fibre access at the price you are paying for your current ADSL connection. In addition, existing landline numbers can still be used when making or receiving voice calls on a fibre connection.

The idea of moving over to fibre may seem daunting, but rest assured that help is at hand if you need information and assistance with migrating your service. There is a range of speeds to choose from at affordable prices and a team of experienced salespeople are available to explain how everything works. We are even available around the clock should you have any questions or concerns around fibre access, or simply require technical support.

So, beyond the cost, user-friendliness, faster speeds, and always-on availability, there is another thing to consider- fibre is future proof. This means that it will be around for many years to come. Modern appliances like televisions, CCTV cameras, washing machines, refrigerators, and the like can all simultaneously access the internet seamlessly through high-speed fibre connectivity.

You can also stream everything from movies, music, videos, and TV series in high-definition quality in the way it was meant to be done. Fibre has many uncapped data bundle options to choose from too, negating the need for data top-ups and expensive out-of-bundle rates. Pay just once a month and enjoy hassle-free internet connectivity.

So, what are you waiting for? Become part of the digital generation and upgrade to high-speed fibre access today.

The APN is still alive and kicking

Posted on by Duo Marketing

Theolin Moodley: Senior Product Manager at Vox

The architecture and topology of an Access Point Name (APN), once developed, had gained traction when CIOs and IT managers were seeking a mobile data solution for a distributed or dispersed workforce. Primarily, sales personnel or consultants that spent a substantial amount of time away from company campuses or offices, were the internal clients that most needed remote connectivity to the company’s network – especially while travelling for business.

A mobile APN is a gateway between a 3G/LTE mobile network and the business’s own computer network, accessing the public internet or private Virtual Private Network (VPN). It is a unique identifier that allows a connection to the company’s network via a Mobile Network Operator’s (MNO) 3G/LTE/5G network.

Since its introduction to the market, corporate mobile APNs proved to be most effective for the highly mobile teams within organisations, it fast became the tried and tested go-to solution for businesses that sought a quick enabler for all employees to work from home/anywhere when the need arose.

APNs deliver a secure connection that creates a private network on a mobile device, protecting information and linking multiple devices together. It enables companies to manage multiple SIM cards each delivering data connectivity through a private APN to remote workers. Furthermore, companies can set usage caps for employees, and view bandwidth on an application level – making it easy to discern whether the user is accessing social networks or streaming content for pure entertainment value or accessing work-related sites that lend itself to actual productivity. Features are option dependent, however.

Ultimately, a mobile APN can significantly reduce data spend in the organisation as management has an integrated reporting environment with a universal view of how employees use their mobile data. The ability to allocate and re-allocate data comes pretty standard too. These attributes of corporate APN solutions provide complete budgetary control that makes sense, especially in the current tough economic climate when businesses are looking to reduce connectivity costs. In addition, businesses are also trying to use recent lessons learned to better equip their organisations for purposes of hybrid working and to provide sustained stability should another disaster or crisis disrupts normal operations in future.

In the absence of the control that APN solutions offer, many businesses had to deal with mobile data costs that skyrocketed while staff worked remotely. The extent of the bill shock related to data purchases may have easily doubled, or even trebled or more in some cases. It was a necessary evil though, as keeping employees connected meant keeping them working and it goes without saying that business continuity is a business imperative.

Halting business operations under any circumstance could lead to substantial losses for any business with a far-reaching impact on suppliers, partners, employees and customers/clients alike. Stable, secure and controlled access to an organisation’s network is crucial and an APN is a formidable choice of the solution both as a primary or complementary remote connectivity option. Within the APN architecture and topology, there is room for customisation allowing businesses a range of product types and features that may be best suited for their needs.

There a two main types of APN solutions, Shared and Private or Corporate APNs. As the name suggests, the Shared APN makes use of Shared Infrastructure. One massive data pipe where all the traffic flows into.

With a standard Shared APN solution, users get access to the world wide web without any restrictions meaning that businesses cannot prevent their employees from accessing social media and content streaming platforms without deliberately installing additional firewalls. A key feature of the Shared APN is the ability to aggregate or pool together data from more than one Mobile Network Operator under one data bundle. The clear benefit is ubiquitous coverage to ensure end users can work from virtually anywhere wherever the signal strength is strongest.

And then there is the Private APN solution to consider. This is more expensive when compared to a Shared APN as the traffic is inherently more secure as the data traffic does not transverse across the public internet unless otherwise requested.  In addition, your service provider in conjunction with the MNO should carve out a dedicated pipe or NNI (network-to-network interface) that only carries data traffic specific to a corporate APN client. The primary use case for this type of solution would be access to a client’s corporate intranet.

Another key benefit of this solution is that organisations can set up policies on the firewall level to ensure that, for example, employees only access certain URLs or websites such as business-based applications such as Outlook, Office 365 or Microsoft Teams while other users could have access to other additional sites.

In addition to APNs delivering advantages to a hybrid workforce, it is in Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine to Machine (M2M) rooted applications where its true potential can be harnessed. These edge devices use SIM cards and generate a small amount of data. But it is in the volume where APN comes into its own and provides organisations with an effective way of managing the thousands of IoT and M2M solutions on its network. A perfect example of this is the M2M SIMs that are inserted in Point of Sale (PoS) devices that enable millions of people to conduct their payment transactions, purchase airtime or electricity even in the remotest of areas in our country.

The modern workforce has undoubtedly adopted new ways of working over the past 2 years or so and arguably many of the changes experienced have been positive for individuals and businesses, productivity, time management and, in some ways, for the planet. Clearly, APN solutions played a significant enablement role in ensuring business continuity in a time of crisis. There is still significant value to be gained by organisations who use APN solutions as a connectivity offering for their distributed workforce, to closely manage data allocations, to manage increasingly complex real estate of IoT devices or are looking to be better prepared for whatever disruption may come next.

 

How NOT to get Hacked: A Survival Word to the ‘not so wise’.

Posted on by Suhail Dinat

We’d like to think we’ve come a long way from the days of chain mails, ‘forward this to ten people or suffer from bad luck for eternity’, and Nigerian Prince scams. Circa 2007, it seemed like you could barely open Hotmail (yes, we’re that old) without encountering some transparent (yet surprisingly effective) means of tricking early internet users into parting with their hard-earned money.

Like we said earlier, we like to think society has progressed since then (or at least become substantially less gullible). However, as anyone who has an elderly aunt in a family WhatsApp group can testify, the rise of social media and online communicative platforms has, sadly, done precious little to deter the spread of incorrect and, more often than not, harmful content (as well as created a plethora of “Good Morning, Have A Blessed Day” motivational memes – seriously, who is making those and sending them to our elders???).

The truth is, for every tech-savvy,’ Mr. Robot in training’ privy to the latest pseudo FNB text message asking you to click and verify, there’s a gullible old grand aunt in search of the next great weight loss miracle pill (or, let’s be honest, a middle-aged uncle trying to add one inch to his… hair). And, in the world of Cyber Security, nothing is more dangerous than unknowing internet users clicking things guaranteed to land them in trouble. Identity theft, malware, phishing scams and the like are more prevalent than ever (we are, after all the third most targeted country in the world for Cyber Crimes – what a time to be the best at something!).

A little education goes a long way, which is why we’ve put together this nifty survival guide to ensure your browsing time isn’t someone else’s payday…

  1. Bill Gates (or anyone, for that matter) is NOT going to send you money.

A quick Google search for the world’s richest man should bring up articles about Mr. Gates believing he’s the Coronavirus Messiah – but none, strangely, of him promising to send $1000 to everyone who forwards his test mailer. If you haven’t interacted with Microsoft, it’s highly unlikely they’ll contact you out of the blue (and if you are a customer, it’s even less likely that good ol’ Bill has decided to feel generous). As such, any Email or communication which promises you gold, diamonds and all the treasures in the land if you click a link, pass on a message, or download a file is 99.99% guaranteed to be a scam – so be wise and economise, because no small fortune ever came via a Gmail link.

  1. Do not click that link in your DM’s

Some common messages which have led to hacked Social Media Accounts begin with “I made this for you” and “this looks just like you”. We can safely say that nobody, especially your high-school rugby captain who you haven’t spoken to since 2012, has not made anything for you – nor will a link lead you to your doppelganger. Be wary of social media DM’s, especially those coming out the blue. More importantly, be careful of any message, be it via a social network or SMS, which directs you to click, follow or download something – often a simple button is all it takes.

  1. Nobody is going to help you earn $2000 a day working from home.

Sure, it’s technically possible, but only through many years of hard work, expertise, and knowledge. If getting rich were as easy as trusting an internet pop up, great aunt Gertrude would be a millionaire and this author wouldn’t be writing this piece at 10pm on a Friday (sorry, boss). These ads and offers (which usually make some outlandish promise that seems too good to be true) usually are, and can be found either in the comments, stories or web pop ups designed to catch desperate users off guard.

  1. That Bitcoin expert in the comments with 1000 testimonials is probably a bot.

These ones get us right in the feels, because sometimes said scammers go so far as to directly WhatsApp innocent, unsuspecting parties privately. You often don’t know where they got your details from or how they’re contacting you, but between their promises of unforetold riches and ‘guaranteed profit’, a gullible party can quickly become a victim. Our favourite pastime is to pretend we work for Interpol until they block our number, but this isn’t for everyone, so be wary of any unknown number even saying ‘hello’ to you, and don’t be fooled into thinking that 1am private message with 16 typos is a representative of a legitimate entity.

  1. The Government does not send out official Data (especially around Covid-19) via WhatsApp

In truth, we naturally distrust anything governmental. If they say it’s Level 3 loadshedding, we immediately assume we’re on Level 5 (which we normally get to anyway). But this one is specifically for those of you in the family chat who insist on passing on “official” Government memos – don’t do it. Official communications come from the predetermined channels (or a very slow speaking President talking in circles for thirty minutes) – but they most certainly don’t come from your local community watch group.

Sadly, we live in a society where it’s easier to get scammed than it is to get electricity. But, like we said earlier, a little education goes a long, long way. These are just the basics of navigating the digital world without being sucked in to a long, dark rabbit hole, but for a more comprehensive range of Cyber Security solutions, check out Armata.co.za. Oh, and lastly, this blog post is one link we don’t mind you circulating – in fact, we encourage it, so let’s get Aunty Gertrude back for a change 😛

It’s fun to be in the… PoPIA?

Posted on by Suhail Dinat

Doesn’t quite have the same ring to it…

Truth be told, the Protection of Personal Information Act (and the feelings it evokes) can, at surface level, seem as interesting as a TED Talk by a member of congress (any member. It doesn’t matter). In truth, at first it seems like a lot of legal jargon and law speak, a mess of convoluted acts, policies and regulations that are seemingly for the benefit and protection of consumers, yet somehow doesn’t prevent Telkom from bombarding us with calls asking if we’d like to upgrade (we don’t).

A quick Google search of the term is, in fact, the greatest insomnia remedy known to man (just don’t tell our boss we fell asleep on the clock. Again). However, with a bit of deep diving (by this, we mean asking our lawyer friend to explain it to us in simple English), we’ve managed to distill it down into simple, easy to understand language – which may explain why it’s a bigger deal than you think.

You see, recent years have seen a lot of theft and misuse of people’s personal information (and no, we’re not talking about the content that made the Kardashian’s famous). Identity theft and cyber crimes are at an all-time high, which led to the need to set up regulations designed to protect your right to privacy (if only someone could explain this to the DA at election time). The PoPIA Act clearly defines the minimum standards required to access or process any individual’s personal information – this includes collecting, receiving, recording, organising, distributing, sharing, storing, or erasing said content (so goodbye to those annoying Mr. Delivery Emails – in theory, at least).

For a customer, this is great, as it means your chances of being spammed with unwanted content are vastly reduced. As a business owner, however, things get a bit tricky. You see, organisations (of any size) in a position to obtain, handle and store the info of a customer or individual must now adhere to the requirements and implement the mandatory steps required to safeguard them accordingly. This includes suppliers, customers, staff, service providers and databases – with non-compliance resulting in fines up to R10 million, 10 years in prison, or a combination of the two (insert joke about crime in South Africa here).

That last line is more sobering than a 2am phone call from your parents when you’ve snuck out to the club. In actuality, although the Act doesn’t exactly inspire feelings of unbridled excitement in society, it is a big deal – and one being taken very, very seriously by organisations and government alike.

So, let’s talk about where we come in…

Our PoPIA Advisory Services aim to help you understand what exactly you’re dealing with (you see, “I didn’t know” doesn’t hold up in court – just ask Oscar). The service does exactly what its name entails, allowing you and your business to operate at full efficiency without the ever-looming threat of breaching the Act, ending up in jail, or having to pay a fine the size of a medium meal at Nandos. Here’s how…

  1. We aim to identify areas within your business which can and will be impacted by the new requirements and obligations under PoPIA. Unless you have the legal team of Shabir Sheik or are really, really clued up in Privacy Law (no, five seasons of Suits doesn’t count), chances are you’ll need to evaluate your organisation and establish where this Act affects you. That’s where we come in, only we simplify it to make compliance that much easier.
  2. We then obtain a full analysis of the business Data Processing methods and Databases, which allows us to better understand where you could be going wrong with your vital information.
  3. We can also identify how high your chances of processing incorrect or inaccurate personal Data may be, and in doing so allow you to take preventative measures so as to avoid incurring any breach or penalties.
  4. Furthermore, we’re able to assess the methods in which you collect, use, store, transfer and discard personal information – anything non-kosher (or should we say non-compliant?) will be immediately identified and rectified.
  5. Next up, we’re able to assist your business in evaluating the handling of Data subjects’ access and erasure requests (in simple terms, we can navigate who has opted in or out to your databases).
  6. And, lastly, our team is ready, willing, and able to form a remediation plan, which in turn can help develop and implement a roadmap towards a PoPIA compliant journey.

We may not be Gerrie Nel (or, despite our best wishes, Harvey Spector), but we do know our way around all things PoPIA – which many organisations sadly don’t. It can be daunting, and there are many regulations and mandatory policies which your brand may not even know exist yet.

Our advice? Don’t overlook or underestimate the Act. The reputational damage alone is enough to cripple the biggest industry titan – then there’s also fines or possible (by which we mean probable) jail time. True, many of us would pay to see our boss in prison for a bit, but it’s no laughing matter when it’s the future of an entire business on the line.

 

The Future of Cloud in South Africa

Posted on by Sean Rose

Spoiler alert: it’s multi-faceted and customisable. It’s also the key to digital transformation and a comprehensive business strategy.

Digitalisation allows businesses to speed up normal day-to-day operations for maximum efficiency. Physical documents are saved and categorised in databases. Invoices are sent and received via email. At any time. From anywhere. In seconds!

Unlike digitalisation – doing the same, but faster – digital transformation gives us all new ways of working. It opens up a world of endless possibilities – one free of, ‘That’s just how we’ve always done it’ thinking. Digitalisation offers the kind of agility and adaptability needed in a world where anything can (and does) happen.

Digitalisation allowed Netflix to pivot from supplying weekly mail-order DVDs in the US to streaming movies and series globally, 24/7. Digital transformation gave the streaming giant the ability to produce the critically-acclaimed original content we know and love today. They did it by leveraging the masses of data and insight Netflix subscribers provide with their viewing habits and preferences.

Here’s the good news: digital transformation is possible for every company, in every industry.

And it all begins – and never ends – with the cloud.

Why Cloud is Here to Stay

Every company needs to access their data safely and securely, from anywhere. It’s a harsh lesson most businesses learnt over the last two years. Honestly, given our erratic power-supply issues, a cloud migration strategy is always going to be a good idea here.

On-site servers are expensive to buy, maintain and update. South African companies also need to factor in the costs of generators to keep them running when load shedding strikes. That’s before you consider the current eye-watering cost of petrol. Not to mention what it’s going to cost in a few years…

To have any kind of future, businesses need to be able to connect at all times. Customers and employees thrive in environments where information is easily accessible and always at hand.

Hosting all, or at least some, of your data in the cloud means you’ll always have access to it, in real time. Because all of the above – the server upgrades, maintenance, and constant power-supply – is already taken care of for you by experts in the field.

So, now you know why you need the cloud. Let’s unpack the importance of having a cloud strategy.

Sadly, there’s no cookie-cutter solution when it comes to cloud integration. Each company is unique, with their own sets of challenges and business goals. Choosing who to partner with to guide you on your cloud journey is what makes all the difference.

Where Cloud is Going Next

Migrating to the cloud to optimise day-to-day operations is just scratching the surface. Why not use this opportunity to leverage your data and gain new ways of working too?

Better still, what about customising your cloud strategy to suit your business needs? Or getting the most from your strategy by partnering with multiple cloud vendors? It’s called multi-cloud. And it means you can have it all – safe, secure hosting and insightful data analytics from the best in the business. But with a single partner to guide and manage the process.

That’s the beauty of Vox Cloud. As a South African cloud solutions provider, Vox is passionate about tailoring a cloud journey to suit each company, regardless of size. Enabling them to reach their business goals both now and in the future.

Not only can our Cloud team guide you on your journey to the cloud, but we also offer the choice of multi-region ISO-compliant data centres along with hybrid and multi-cloud strategies. Vox leverages the latest cloud innovations without losing sight of your unique business needs.

It all comes back to a deep understanding that a human touch is what makes these tech-driven solutions infinitely better.

PoPIA Compliance – Making It Work For Business

Posted on by Jeanette Simpson

Thanks to digital transformation, we’re living in the golden age of personal data.

Never before have we been able to record, store and access so much information about so many different people and entities all at once. But, with this power comes a huge amount of responsibility. Especially for businesses that rely on personal information for day-to-day operations.

Make PoPIA a Priority

PoPIA (Protection of Personal Information Act) officially came into effect in South Africa on 1 July 2021. It aligns our privacy laws with international standards – holding all of us accountable for data management and security.

The regulation gives individuals increased control over how their personal data is collected and used. There are also strict requirements on how that data is safeguarded and used by third parties who are given permission to capture it.

There’s no greater currency than trust. A failure to respect people’s privacy or ensure the security of their data can severely damage a company’s brand and influence consumer buying decisions. Besides the potential for reputational damage, with PoPIA now in effect, businesses also face the possibility of crippling fines, jail time or both for failure to comply. The penalties include up to R10 million in fines and up to 10 years in prison for guilty parties. Organisations also face the risk of class action lawsuits under PoPIA.

It’s not all doom and gloom. When given the right amount of care and consideration, PoPIA is a business’ greatest asset. PoPIA compliance allows you to build trust and forge stronger relationships with customers and suppliers. Not only does compliance make your business more risk-aware and transparent to regulators, but, when done right, it allows you to reduce operational costs.

PoPIA compliance is a great opportunity to not only overhaul your data policies, but your company’s entire approach to data security. A more robust Cyber Security solution literally pays for itself when you take the impact and costs of a data breach into consideration.

It’s Time to Comply

There’s a lot to keep track of when it comes to PoPIA compliance. That’s why the first thing to consider is appointing an information officer. After that, it’s up to you to draft a privacy policy and raise awareness of the importance of PoPIA among all your employees.

Once you’ve had time to review your data collection and storage policies, as well as report any data breaches, you can embark on the necessary journey of making your company more data savvy. Including educating everyone to only share personal information when they’re allowed to by law.

PoPIA compliance also includes several minimum security requirements for the lawful processing of data, such as documentation, security, and confidentiality.

Customers and employees should always have the ability to access, update or delete previously collected data when needed.

Training employees to understand and recognise the processes and procedures that that help your company identify a potential incident and mitigate its impact is invaluable.

Up Your Cyber Security Game

It doesn’t matter how big or small your business is. If it’s online and collects data, it’s a target. In addition to protecting their own data from a breach, thanks to PoPIA, it’s essential that companies adopt and implement a strong Cyber Security approach.

Globally, the total average cost of a breach increased by 10% from 2020 to 2021, with companies affected shelling out an average of $4.24 million (or R64 million).

Locally, the IBM 2019 Cost of Data study puts the average total cost of a data breach at just over R43 million. Which is almost just as pricey as the global average.

One cyber-attack can literally put a small to medium-sized company out of business. It’s never been more critical for businesses of all sizes to move rapidly to secure their key IT systems, company, and customer information.

Data compliance and security is a continuous process, not a once-off event. Here’s the good news: Armata is here to help.

We’re perfectly positioned to assess your business processes and identify any gaps and issues. We’ll also provide a Security Awareness portal to equip your employees with the knowledge needed to spot and avoid data breaches.

We’ll also add a comprehensive, managed Firewall, endpoint security and Anti-Virus software to your arsenal to ensure every compliance and security need is met. It’s what we do best.

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