Boo! Once again it’s time for us ghouls at Gravity Systems to don our capes, sharpen our fangs, and fire up our mad-scientist lab equipment for our annual Halloween blog post. After all the real-world frights and stresses offered by the past year, the harmless fun of this holiday actually comes as a welcome relief. Even so, there are some genuine scares lurking out there for business owners who haven’t taken the necessary safeguards against the dark forces that can wreck their IT systems’ productivity and function. So while you’re buying goody bags for the trick-or-treaters and decorating your office with paper skeletons, watch out for these potential ghosts in your IT machine.

Invisible men (and women) - When H. G. Welles wrote The Invisible Man, he envisioned a human being who could walk among others unseen. Today we have our own invisible men and women to worry about in the form of hackers who phish for information, hold data for ransom, and use cryptojacking to steal processor cycles and electricity. Make sure you’ve barred the doors against these invisible invaders with the proper firewall and malware protection.

Mummified devices - The many cinematic incarnations of the Mummy feature a dried-out, ancient creature that can nevertheless create mayhem wherever it goes. Ancient hardware can cause its share of frightening issues as well, especially if years of heat or exposure to the elements has led to erratic performance and imminent failure. You’ll want to bury these mummies once and for all, replacing them with fresh new devices that have many good years ahead of them.

Bewitched programs - Do your essential programs seem to have a mind of their own these days? A variety of issues, from incorrect settings to outdated software versions, can haunt your network, servers, and workstations. Contact our Austin IT managed services team for any necessary “exorcisms!”