8 IT Support Myths You (Might) Still Believe Are True

Introduction

Believe it or not, computers and IT have been a part of our working lives for the better part of the last three decades.

Since the mid-90s, when Windows-based computers first became commonplace in offices across the land, there’s been plenty of time for myths to develop.

So, if you’ve heard any of the following titbits of IT support info in recent years – and you still believe they’re accurate – we’ve got news for you.

Here are 8 IT support myths you might still believe are true… but really aren’t.

#1: Apple Macs are immune to computer viruses

Here’s perhaps the oldest IT support myth in the book: Macs don’t get viruses.

The truth is they can and they do. It’s simply that virus infections occur much less regularly on Mac computers than they do on Windows machines.

There are a couple of potential explanations for this:

• There is a lower install base for Macs across the globe. According to statistics, MacOS makes up just 13% of operating systems, whereas Windows accounts for 74%.
• There are simply fewer known vulnerabilities in the Mac ecosystem, and Apple does a good job of keeping their OS updated against potential threats.

#2: It’s safe to open any attachment as long as it comes from someone inside your company

It’s perfectly understandable that most of us would instantly trust an email from our colleagues – that’s just human nature.

Sadly, malware and cyberattacks have evolved to such a point that they can now (almost) imperceptibly ‘spoof’ email addresses so that an email might appear legitimate, but is in fact malicious.

In simple terms, this means that you should always double-check any attachment which you’re not expecting or hasn’t been scanned or approved by your IT support team. We’ve covered the risks of phishing attacks in detail on the Get Support blog before, and it really just takes one person to fall victim to wreak havoc on a company’s security.

If you’re not sure about an email or an attachment, delete it and contact your IT team or service provider.

#3: It’s cheaper to hire in-house than outsource your IT support

Here’s a myth which is a bit of a hot topic, but the truth is that the answer will depend wildly depending on the business in question.

What we can say, however, is that there’s often a good reason to outsource IT support rather than hiring a team – especially for small and medium-sized businesses.

It can easily be the case that small businesses simply don’t have enough day-to-day work to justify a full salaried IT person, which is where an IT support agreement like those from Get Support come in very useful indeed. For a more in-depth discussion of the pros of outsourcing, check out our dedicated article on IT support outsourcing.

#4: Virus protection isn’t necessary if you don’t have any sensitive files

It’s an easy assumption to make that your computer is essentially useless to a cyber-attacker if you don’t have any sensitive or valuable files on it – but an IT support team would not agree.

It is simply never a good idea to leave a computer exposed to attack, and that goes double if the machine is hooked up to an internal business network. In these cases, an unprotected endpoint can serve as a doorway into your entire system – and could be devastating.

If you’re interested in mitigating potential endpoint attacks, learn about Endpoint Detection and Response with our guide.

#5: Expensive cables always perform better than cheap ones

Whether you’re looking for a USB cable to connect a printer, or an HDMI to hook your laptop up to a conference room projector, cables are a veritable staple of offices everywhere.

There’s also a bit of a misconception around them.

Despite what marketing teams might want you to believe, there’s no real benefit to buying ridiculously expensive cables over basic affordable ones. Provided the specifications of the cable are like-for-like, (e.g. HDMI 2.1), the quality of the output will be identical regardless of how many bells and whistles the manufacturer throws into the mix.

(And, yes, that includes gold-plated connectors… even if they do look a bit nicer).

#6: Installing more RAM on a computer will make it faster

There are a few upgrades you can make to a PC or laptop to give it a speed boost, but – contrary to popular belief – a RAM upgrade isn’t one of them.

What does RAM do? It’s essentially the short-term memory of your computer.

The more programs you have open at once, the more of your RAM is used up. As you fill up your installed RAM, your computer will begin to use its hard-drive in place of RAM – known as ‘paging’ – which is much, much slower. So, adding more RAM won’t speed up your computer, but rather simply allow you to open more programs at once before it starts to slow down.

So how do you increase how fast your computer loads and runs applications? To do that, you’d need to upgrade the processor – or CPU – of your machine.

#7: It’s always safer to store your data on–premises than in the cloud

Another myth which dates back decades is the idea that your company’s data must be on–site at all times to be safe and secure.

The rise of remote cloud-based storage has led some to assume that these services are insecure because your data will be geographically separated from your place of work.

In reality, though, cloud storage is often safer than on-premises options because you benefit from enterprise-class infrastructure. Microsoft OneDrive for Business is a great example: your files will be stored on some of the world’s most secure servers and protected by world-class measures.

That said, we always recommend you manage your own data backups – even when using the cloud.

#8: It’s essential to replace your IT hardware every year

If you believed everything computer manufacturers said, you’d probably be upgrading your computer equipment every single week – let alone once per year. But even that is a bit excessive.

IT hardware has improved so much these days that there’s only incremental benefits to upgrading more than once every 3-5 years. So, unless there’s a very specific feature or hardware dependency you need, we don’t recommend upgrading annually.

To learn more about our IT support and hardware recommendations, check out our IT support agreements.

Looking for expert IT support you can believe in?

Computers and IT will always bring with them a level of complexity, which in turn means it’s easy to be misled – as this list proves.

If you’re a business owner, the last thing you want is to be confused or misinformed about your IT support services. That’s why you should speak to the Get Support team. With decades of experience delivering reliable IT support to UK businesses, we only offer expert advice you can trust.

To speak to us about our IT support packages, call the team now on 01865 59 4000 or just fill in the form below.