How To Protect Your Clients' Privacy

As technology continues to advance, it is becoming increasingly more difficult to keep personal and client information confidential. As you take advantage of the software, programs and other tech tools available to keep your client data organized, it is critical to ensure you are also keeping this data safe.

Here are five steps to protect your clients’ information and privacy:

1. Start with Layers of Protection
   Your first line of defense starts with walls of protection. Not literal walls, of course, but firewalls. By adding firewalls and anti-virus software to your servers and computers, you are setting up layers of protection against cyber threats like viruses, Trojans and other harmful coding that could potentially break into your client data.
    
2. Always Encrypt Your Data
   Then, once you have added your protective layers, focus specifically on the data itself. Always encrypt your data to require a pin or password to access the programs, files or other locations where client information is accessible. This way, the only way to get into the information is by knowing the encryption code. Consider 2-step authentication when possible.
    
3. Keep Access Restricted
   Limit who knows the encryption code to those within your business, and then restrict it even further to only those who actually need access to the information. By doing this, you are keeping the information available only on a need-to- know basis, which helps keep your clients’ privacy protected.
    
4. Have a Plan
   Once you have everything in place, your client data should be well protected; however, you should always be prepared in the event of a breach. Know what you are going to do if a breach happens so you can alert your employees and the clients affected. This is critical for the clients to be informed in order for them to take the steps necessary to monitor their personal information.
    
5. Plan Ahead and Be Prepared
   Ultimately, when it comes to protecting your clients’ privacy you want to be as prepared as you possibly can be to stop a breach from happening in the first place. A good rule of thumb is to research any programs or applications you plan to use before installing or using them to make sure they have the layers of protection you need to keep the data safe. Learn how Virtual Halo is dedicated to keeping personal information secure by contacting our representatives.

Virtual Halo is always looking an ways we can strengthen the encryption and security of our clients data. Because it's smart, because it's right and because that's what our clients want. Personal safety, protection and peace of mind.

How To Turn Your iPhone & Apple Watch Into Intuitive Life Savers

What’s the one thing you always carry with you no matter where you go?

Your phone.

Basically like a mini computer, these handheld devices are used for more than just making phone calls. They can grant you access to the internet, send a message across the world in a matter of seconds, and now - they can be used to send an instant SOS.

Here’s how you can turn your Apple into an intuitive life saver:

Step One: Download the Virtual Halo App

Start by visiting the app store and searching for Virtual Halo, your new personal safety app for students, travelers, adventurers and anyone on the go. From there, download the app to your phone and Apple Watch. When you open the app for the first time, you will be prompted to sign in or create an account. Follow the on-screen instructions to get the app set up to where getting help is as simple as the push of a button.

Step Two: Stay Safe with Reactive and Pro-active Features

Once the app is set up, getting help is as easy as one-two- three. Within your account, you should have an emergency contact list. The app will send your SOS message along with your last known GPS coordinates whenever you send an alert for help. When you don’t need it, the app will still be running in the background (without granting anyone visibility to your location without your permission), so you can enjoy the thrill of adventure without worrying about Big Brother.

Step Three: Get Help When You Need It

With SOS, Check-in, Going Out and I’m OK features, you can go adventuring more comfortably knowing you have access to help when you need it. Virtual Halo has been designed with virtually everyone in mind, from children to traveling businessmen, and its features allow customization to work for everyone. Keep your emergency contacts in-the- know, or reserve the app for a quick SOS only when you need to. No matter how you use it, Virtual Halo turns your iPhone and Apple Watch into intuitive life savers.

Personal Security Is Changing It Up For Home Health Care Providers

Home health care providers offer a wide variety of home health services for both illnesses and injuries. These trained professionals carry a heavy responsibility to provide quality care to their patients, but travel carries inherent risks for them. Not only are they consistently traveling from place to place, either in a car, bus or other method of transportation, but they are also meeting multiple people throughout the day, many of which they may have never met before.

Here’s how personal security is changing it up for these home health care providers:

Taking Proactive Measures for Safety

Before they go out, home health care providers are now equipped with various types of safety measures to keep them safe while out on the job. Many of these are proactive, like the personal safety app Virtual Halo. These providers need to keep their phones on them at all times in case they are called to visit another patient unexpectedly or management needs to get in touch with them. By having Virtual Halo installed on this device, they have a personal safety net that works in the background without granting unpermitted access to their location or information. One of the app’s many features includes the ability to check in with a set of emergency contacts, such as their manager, throughout the day to let them know they’re okay, or send a message for help if they’re not.

Keeping Home Health Care Providers Safe

If the home health care provider feels uncomfortable, or that they may potentially be stepping into a dangerous situation at any time, they should have access to help when they need it. Personal security is keeping them safe by giving them access to more tools that enable them to avoid or escape these types of situations. Virtual Halo is just one of these many tools, which can also work reactively in the event of an emergency to request help when they need it by sending an instant SOS with their last known location to a list of preset emergency contacts. It’s making keeping home health care providers safe easier than ever before!

Telling Someone You’re Lost Is As Easy As Two Taps

Being in a dangerous or uncomfortable situation is a frightening experience. With adrenaline pumping through your veins and the fight-or- flight response kicking in, it’s critical to make the right decision at the right time to keep yourself safe. If you’re lost and you can feel yourself start to panic, take a deep breath and calmly pull out your phone or Apple Watch.
With Virtual Halo, your personal safety app, installed on these devices telling someone you’re lost and need help is as easy as two quick taps on the screen. Here’s how it works:

Check-In To Let Them Know You’re OK

If you’ve gone off the grid or you’re simply traveling away from home, Virtual Halo lets you send a quick, simple message to your preset list of emergency contacts that lets them know you’re okay. You can even opt to send your location for an extra sense of safety and security. In 2018 this feature is expanding to allow you to automatically check in with your contacts throughout the day, with the option to immediately notify them with your last known location if you do not respond.

Send an Instant SOS If You’re Not

On the other hand, if you are not okay and find that you’ve lost your way, sending an SOS is as easy as tap-tap on the screen of your phone or Apple Watch. Virtual Halo comes equipped with a panic button that will send an instant SOS notification to your emergency contacts that lets them know you’re in danger. This comes in handy when you’re lost, because it sends GPS coordinates of your last known location with the SOS so they can send help directly to you.

Go Adventuring with Confidence

Before your next adventure begins, be sure to plan ahead and download Virtual Halo to your devices. Having an Apple Watch on your wrist with the app ready to go is a quick and efficient way to send an SOS if you do happen to get lost. It’s an intuitive personal safety app designed with you in mind, so you can go adventuring confidently, and get help if you need it.

Safone on Radio Compile

Marie De Potter and Alexandre Behier spoke with interest about the Safone personal safety app in their show "Beyond the Internet". Hear it by clicking here

For more information on the Safone personal safety app, visit here: https://www.virtualhalo.com/safone

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In Beyond the Internet, Alexandre introduced you to the Safone app, available on iOS and Android. The application can reassure loved ones when we move, sending a message once arrived at destination. Check out all the features in the sequence above.