Insights
Practical IT advice for Ghanaian businesses.
Short guides on the problems we see every week: power cuts, payment fraud, lost files and systems nobody has checked in years. Each one ends with steps you can take this week.
- Power · 5 min readSurviving dumsor: protect your computers, servers and dataKeep office computers, servers and data safe through power cuts: UPS sizing in plain terms, surge and AVR protection, clean shutdown and what to keep running.
- Security · 5 min readFake invoices and changed bank details: how to stop the scamHow the 'our bank account has changed' scam works by email, WhatsApp and MoMo, and the simple call-back and two-person checks that stop the money leaving.
- Backup · 4 min readTest your backups: an untested backup is only a hopeA backup you have never restored cannot be trusted. How to run a restore drill, follow the 3-2-1 rule, keep a locked copy and get alerts when backups fail.
- Tools · 4 min readFake and cracked software licences: the real costWhy cracked software and grey-market keys cost more than they save, how to check Windows and Office are genuine, and how to budget for proper licences.
- Tools · 4 min readFree online PDF tools and your confidential documentsBefore you upload a contract, payslip or ID card to a free PDF website, check where the file goes. What to look for, and safer tools for everyday PDF jobs.
- Data · 4 min readData retention: how long to keep records and how to deleteKeep business records and personal data only as long as needed: a simple retention schedule, where copies hide, and how to dispose of old PCs safely.
- Systems · 4 min readDomain controller management for small officesWhat a domain controller does in plain words, why you need two and what to check: replication, time sync, Active Directory backups, admin accounts and patching.
- Systems · 4 min readFile share management: folders, permissions and leaversOrganise shared folders by department, set permissions by group not person, remove 'Everyone: Full control', handle leavers and review who has access.
- Systems · 4 min readWhen your IT person leaves: a handover checklistA checklist for when your IT person leaves: passwords, admin accounts, domain and DNS, Microsoft 365 or Google admin, supplier contacts and documentation.
- Security · 4 min readBusiness email takeover: passwords and two-step sign-inWhy a stolen email password so often ends in fraud, and how to protect mailboxes with two-step verification, better passwords and checks for forwarding rules.
- Security · 4 min readRansomware: how it gets in and how to recover without payingHow ransomware gets into Ghanaian businesses, and how to recover without paying: offline backups, patching, limited admin rights and a written plan.
- Systems · 4 min readBusiness email on your own domain vs Gmail or YahooEmail on your own domain or a free Gmail or Yahoo address? How the choice affects customer trust, fraud risk and control of mailboxes when staff leave.
- Automation · 4 min readSigns your business has outgrown ExcelSpreadsheets start most businesses. Here are the warning signs that yours now costs you time, money and mistakes, and what to do before it breaks.
- Automation · 4 min readAutomating approvals and paperwork: where to startPaper forms and approval chains slow every office. A practical way to pick the first process to automate, what it involves and how to avoid wasted money.
- Automation · 4 min readStop re-typing: connecting your business systemsWhen payments, accounting, email and WhatsApp do not talk to each other, staff copy data by hand. How integrations work, what to connect first and the risks.
- Automation · 4 min readCustom app or off-the-shelf software: how to decideShould you buy ready-made software or build your own application? A plain guide to cost, fit, ownership and risk, so you choose what suits your business.