Facebook which initially started off as a networking tool for Harvard students by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004 became a sudden hit when it was made open to public in 2006. What once had a humble start has reached billions of people today. As per statistics, there were 2.072 billion monthly active users as on January 1, 2018.

The primary purpose of Facebook was to help people connect with their friends & family. It was to be used as a tool for sharing important stuff related to one’s life with their near and dear ones. However, with time, things changed and there was more of “passive content” as Mark Zuckerberg, the company’s Chief Executive states. This includes videos and articles that are meant to simply sit back and watched or read by the user. 

Facebook, however has made certain important announcements and has decided to overhaul the news feed. In his post Mark mentioned, “At its best, Facebook has always been about personal connections. By focusing on bringing people closer together -- whether it's with family and friends, or around important moments in the world -- we can help make sure that Facebook is time well spent.”

So, the users will now witness numerous change in the kind of posts that will appear on their feed. Facebook is planning to use various algorithms to highlight the content that friends and family share. This will however understate posts and advertizements from publishers and brands. The idea behind this major change is to maximize and prioritize meaningful interactions and increase utility for users. This is all being done to make Facebook purposeful. People should feel positive and optimistic after going through their feed.

However, the after effects of the news feed overhaul shall be far reaching for publishers, small venture owners & entrepreneurs who majorly rely on Facebook for marketing their product or service. They won’t be able to reach as much audience as they were earlier subjected to.

So does this mean Facebook will see fall in revenues? Definitely not. Facebook Ads would become even more popular and the change in news feed will push businesses to create “engaging” content while promoting their businesses. Both factors will contribute to increased Facebook usage. From marketeer’s point of view, the social media strategy will now focus on creating engaging posts rather than making newsfeed a billboard for business promotions.

For more information & to know more about latest Social Media Strategies, contact Centex Technologies at (972) 375 - 9654.

There are numerous cloud security providers who offer a wide array of services to their clients. Albeit, the cloud providers take measures to secure physical data centers and server hardware on which the virtual machines run. However, it is the responsibility of the business to protect their virtual machines and applications. So cloud computing security is a mutual responsibility that both need to share in order to keep the data stored on cloud completely secure.

With more and more organizations progressing towards cloud it has become important to take a note over its security. So here we have listed certain cloud computing control measures that you must take -

Know What You Are Responsible For –
The level of accountability differs for each service provider. So you must know what are your roles and responsibilities and what all falls under your cloud provider.

Use All Available Security Tools -
Try to figure out the security services that your cloud host provides. Make sure that you use the available security tools to protect your data that has been stored on cloud. Since, it is also your responsibility to keep your data secured so make sure that you take every possible step to ensure complete safety.

Opt For CASB Technology –
CASB stands for Cloud Access Security Brokers and is a software that assists businesses in keeping their data secure on cloud. It is used to monitor traffic between user’s device and the cloud. It immediately informs the user if any unauthorized attempt is made to gain access of vital information, logins or credentials. 

Control Cloud Access -
Not all employees need to know about sensitive and crucial information of the company. So, employers need to limit the access. They must decide the key persons and ensure that the vital information is made available to trusted employees only. Also, it is important to have a multi layered protection plan to ensure that if one security measure fails, the other one can be at rescue and save your data stored on cloud. 

Some employees might have an ill intention towards the company and so may be a threat to the cloud data security. However some others may become a cause of data breach due to their negligence. So it is important to train your employees about the cloud security tools and ways to use them.

Protect The Data –
The smartest move is to encrypt the data before you store it on cloud. Encryption minimizes the risk of misuse to a large extent. It is a foolproof method that can help you keep your data and vital information protected.

Cloud computing security has become a matter of concern and must be taken seriously to avoid any data breaches in future. For more information, contact Centex Technologies at (972) 375 - 9654.

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Centex Technologies receives its MBE certification in Georgia

Killeen, TX, January 16, 2018– Centex Technologies is pleased to announce its newly awarded Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) certification through the Georgia Department of Administrative Services (DOAS), in cooperation with the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT). By passing the particular review and requirements, Centex Technologies may operate as a Minority Business Enterprise and Minority Subcontractor within the state of Georgia, receiving contracts working with state and local agencies.

Centex Technologies previously received its Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) certification in the state of Texas in 2016. Through the DBE interstate application process, Centex was able to apply for and receive its DBE certification with the state of Georgia in 2017, as an advantage for our Atlanta office.

DBE‐certified businesses in Georgia that meet the state’s MBE qualifications are automatically eligible for MBE certification.

According to the Georgia Minority Supplier Development Council, MBE certification provides emerging firms with invaluable business development resources. With certification, enterprising business owners gain unprecedented access to corporate buyers and executives who are interested in working with certified minority business.

For more information about this certification and other work Centex Technologies performs in the government division, please contact Christopher Walton, Vice President and Legal Counsel (Government Division) at cwalton@centextech.com

About Centex Technologies
Centex Technologies is an IT consulting company with offices in Killeen, Austin and Dallas, Texas; and Atlanta, Georgia. Our goal is to provide innovative IT solutions that exceed expectations. We assist our clients through a wide range of comprehensive and cost‐effective services to advise, install, service and repair, configure, maintain and teach Information Technology. Our highly skilled and professional staff has extensive experience serving medium‐ to large‐scale organizations in diverse technical areas such as Network Administration; Technical Support; Project Management; Search Engine Optimization (SEO); Internet Marketing, and custom Web, Application, and Software Design and Development. Additional information about Centex Technologies can be found at www.centextech.com

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