GraVoc to Host Gary Miliefsky Speech

GraVoc Associates, Inc. and NetClarity, Inc. announced Thursday afternoon that they will be holding a special information security lunch & learn event on Wednesday, February 18, 2009.

Gary Miliefsky, founder and CEO of NetClarity and founding member of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will be speaking at this event, which is free of charge upon RSVP and includes a buffet lunch. He will be addressing the "nine best network security practices of 2009." This speech will surely cover a wide variety of topics that are relevant to the banking industry and beyond, including identity theft and the new stringent laws, such as Massachusetts General Law (MGL) 93H, which have significant implications to businesses throughout the country.

This event, which will take place at the Bay Colony Corporate Center in Waltham, MA, is designed so that attendees from the Greater Boston area will learn about the new information security trends and challenges that will face small businesses and especially financial institutions. GraVoc and NetClarity plan to host similar events, including one in southwestern New England, in the coming weeks.

If you are interested in attending this event or would like more information, please view the Lunch & Learn invitation on the new GraVoc.com.

GraVoc Associates, Inc. is a full-service consulting firm celebrating its fifteenth anniversary in 2009. A Microsoft Gold Certified Partner based in Peabody, MA, GraVoc has been dedicated to providing software solutions, information security, technological services, and professional services to clients in a wide range of industries. Late in 2008, GraVoc partnered with Bedford, MA-based NetClarity, Inc., the developer of the innovative NACWall product that has earned the respect and admiration of many information security professionals and publications.

To learn more about GraVoc visit http://www.gravoc.com/.
To learn more about NetClarity visit http://www.netclarity.net/.

GraVoc Launches Quarterly Newsletter

Monday afternoon, with the help of many staff members, GraVoc launched the inaugural issue of its quarterly newsletter, the GraVoc Quarterly. The GQ newsletter was distributed via email to GraVoc clients. If you did not receive the email and you would like to know what is new at 81 Main Street in Peabody, a copy of the newsletter is available here at the GraVoc website.

It is very easy to subscribe to future issues of GQ. Simply send an email to the GraVoc Quarterly at gravocgq@gravoc.com and you will be added to the mailing list.

Thanks to the entire GraVoc staff for their commitment to the content and production of the newsletter. A special thanks to Nate Gravel, Brian Gravel, and Matt Wilkins for dedicating time to compiling content, formatting the layout, and configuring Microsoft Dynamics CRM to meet GraVoc's internal needs with the same enthusiasm that characterizes GraVoc's commitment to make Microsoft Dynamics products work towards clients' needs.

Microsoft Wants to Recession-Proof Your Business

GraVoc Associates has been a Microsoft partner in Greater Boston and New England for several years, and has just recently claimed the #2 spot of Microsoft re-sellers in New England.  In all of our years as a Microsoft Dynamics re-seller, we have never seen Microsoft so aggressively offer deals and price breaks to sell Dynamics solutions.  We see this as Microsoft recognizing the fact that the ongoing historic recession is taking its toll on small businesses and while they previously would be strongly considering comprehensive enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, they might now be balking.

Among many others, here are a few of the very aggressive deals Microsoft is offering:

• Qualified new customers for Microsoft Dynamics AX, GP, SL, NAV, and Dynamics CRM have the option to enjoy 0% financing on user licenses.  Customers will not have to pay interest, and customers will experience the rapid return on investment that characterizes implementing Microsoft Dynamics ERP software even sooner.  Depending on the length of the recession, new customers will have the opportunity to become recession-proof by saving money by streamlining processes and cutting unnecessary administrative costs!
• New and existing customers also have the option to pay nothing for the Dynamics ERP software licenses for six months!  Customers can start upgrading their information technology infrastructure and potentially recession-proofing themselves while still having cash on hand for addressing whatever unforeseen challenges may come at them.
• Similar to trading in a used car for a new one, businesses “outgrowing” Quickbooks can “trade in” their Quickbooks licenses for a significant price deduction on Dynamics ERP software.  In most cases, the discount could exceed several thousand dollars.
• Microsoft is offering a 20% discount for existing customers who want to take advantage of a license model transition (such as switching Modular-Based Licensing software to Business-Ready Licensing software) and customers who want to add Business Ready User or Business Ready Module licenses to their pre-existing Microsoft Dynamics solution.

More information on these specific offers can be obtained by contacting a representative from GraVoc at 978-538-9055 or by visiting the Microsoft Business Solutions website.  For more information about GraVoc’s role in implementing Dynamics ERP solutions, please visit the Solutions section of the GraVoc website.

GraVoc is proud to be a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner because Microsoft’s drastic measures to help small businesses become more profitable and recession-resistant through these market-leading solutions aligns perfectly with GraVoc’s philosophy of helping small businesses help their bottom lines with strong IT infrastructure.  GraVoc has years of experience installing Microsoft Dynamics ERP solutions for businesses in many different industries.

We certainly understand how in the last few months your business may have become more hesitant to make an investment in ERP software.  However, Microsoft has identified this fear and has taken large measures to introduce unprecedented offers. 

We hope Microsoft’s industry-leading business solutions coupled with GraVoc’s tremendous expertise and competitive implementation prices lead you to consider Microsoft Dynamics and GraVoc to help your business gain a competitive advantage, even during tough economic times.

GraVoc Partners with NetClarity

Peabody, MA-based GraVoc Associates, Inc. has teamed up with Bedford, MA-based NetClarity as part of their continuing dedication to proving the best information security solutions to their clients.  NetClarity’s NACWall takes network access control to a new level.

The innovative NACWall product provides an unprecedented layer of security to your network that firewalls, anti-virus software, and the like do not protect against.  In one piece of hardware, the NACWall has the abilities to secure your network in a way that has never previously been possible with one machine, thereby reducing your cost of compliance auditing.

The NACWall:

• Continuously scans your networks for CVEs (“Vulnerabilities” or “Holes”) and reports each hole for prompt rectification.
• Monitors your network for unauthorized devices, such as laptops, wireless devices, or PDAs, and blocks unauthorized devices if desired.
• Runs reports that can prove your compliance to regulations, such as GLBA, Sarbanes-Oxley, and the new Massachusetts General Law (MGL) 93H.
• Is an agent-free, non-invasive solution.

NetClarity prides themselves on their innovative NACWall product and its ability to protect, speed up, and lengthen the life of your company’s tremendous IT investment.  Their solutions have been heralded as some of the best in the business, as they have accomplished the following accolades:

• CRN Test Center Product of the Year.
• “One of the top three most innovative network security companies in the world” according to the RSA Conference Innovation Showdown.
• SC Magazine’s perfect 5-star rating and “Best Buy” certification.
• 2009 SC Magazine Award Finalist.

GraVoc Associates’ trusted information technology and information security professionals are in the process of being trained to implement and support this versatile piece of hardware.  GraVoc, an IT and information security consulting firm celebrating its 15th anniversary this year, is proud to team up with NetClarity.  GraVoc feels that the NACWall product perfectly aligns itself with the company’s commitment to providing clients with long-lasting solutions that boost the security of their IT infrastructure.

Information security customers in the Greater Boston area and throughout New England and the Northeast can now use the NACWall and GraVoc’s services in tandem to cement their confidence in their network, improve their regulatory compliance, and increase their profitability.

iPhone Exchange Certificate Error Problem Solved!

Apple’s iPhone is emerging as one of the most popular cellular phones/PDAs on the market, and a capability that is becoming more crucial for PDA users is synching their email account with their phone or PDA.

The iPhone has had a few problems synching with the widely-used Microsoft Exchange email software, as users are informed of an “Exchange Certificate Error.”  After much troubleshooting for a client, GraVoc Associates has discovered a simple way to solve this problem.  The steps are outlined below:

1. Set up a personal Web-based email account on your iPhone (AOL, GMail, Yahoo! Mail, etc.).  You must use an account that does not block “potentially harmful files” (most corporate Exchange servers do block potentially harmful files).
2. On your computer, export your Exchange Server Certificate by following the steps below:
   • Open Microsoft Internet Explorer and navigate to your “Outlook Web Access” website.  The website will tell you “There is a problem with this website’s security certificate.”  If you do not get the security certificate screen, use “https://” instead of “http://” in your address.  If this does not solve this problem, contact your system administrator to obtain the certificate.
   • Click the “Continue to this website” link.
   • Click on the “Certificate Error” notification.  This should look like a red shield with an X in the middle, pictured here.
   • Click the “View Certificates” link.
   • Go to the “Details” tab.
   • Click the “Copy to File” button.
   • Keep the default format (DER encoded binary x.509 (.cer)) and click the “Next” button.
   • Click the “Browse” button.  Select your desktop and type “Mail” in the filename.  Click the “Save” button.
   • Click the “Next” button.
   • Click the “Finish” button.
   • A box will appear that informs you that the certificate was exported.  Click “OK.”
3. On your computer, open your personal email account from Step 1 (AOL, GMail, Yahoo, etc.).  Send yourself an email with the “mail.cer” file as an attachment.  (The sender should be your personal account, and the recipient should also be your personal account). This is so you can receive this email via your iPhone.
4. On your iPhone, go to the mail icon and access the inbox.  Open the message with the “mail.cer” attachment.
5. On your iPhone, scroll to the bottom of the email and click on the “mail.cer” file to download the attachment.
6. On the iPhone’s Install Profile screen, click the “Install” button to install the certificate.

These steps should solve the certificate error problem.

Based in Peabody, MA, GraVoc Associates, Inc is celebrating fifteen years of solving problems like this one for our clients and others.  GraVoc strongly encourages clients and the general public to frequently visit GraVoc.com and the GraVoc News Blog for tips and tricks like the one above.