Cydar Medical Ltd
Supporting a high growth start-up to successful international business
Cydar Medical Ltd approached us during their start-up phase and have continued to work with us as they have grown into a successful international business.
They wanted a managed service provider (MSP) who could grow with them. Cydar Medical’s outsourced IT support needs have changed over the years as the business has grown, but their first requirement was that we find a way to encrypt and protect sensitive patient data.
As their business was to deal with patients in the clinic, though not store any patient-identifiable-data (PID) on their network, Cydar founder Tom Carrell and Chief Technology Officer wanted to ensure that, during the worst case scenario of some PID being leaked onto a Cydar device, and then that Cydar device was lost or stolen, it would be impossible for the third party to find or use that information.
Encryption of sensitive data
IT for Starters decided to use the built-in capability of Bitlocker in Windows (initially as part of Windows 7 Enterprise) to encrypt each device. This required a PIN to unlock the device. For an additional level of protection and to ensure that we recorded the status of all devices, we employed a third-party application which allowed certain policies to be applied to the devices, ensuring no user could decrypt the device without authorisation. It also protected the device from any unsolicited log-in attempts at the OS level.
In conjunction with this, we set up a windows domain. This allowed us to control and manage users and computers on their network. Utilising group policy, we were able to set a rigorous password policy, distribute and patch software, and provision network resources securely.
Email, calendar and storage set up
IT for Starters used the flexibility and costeffectiveness of Office 365, allowing Cydar to get enterprise level email, contacts and calendars with the additional benefit of cloud file storage with OneDrive and the ability to control Office licensing for their devices.
Hardware was also a key area that needed careful planning as the company had different requirements for different members of staff. We set on three distinct models per type of user – this streamlined the ordering process for hardware, and ensured support was simplified with a three-year warranty on all devices.
Outsourced IT support that grows with your business
IT for Starters produced a level of service and hardware that has scaled perfectly with Cydar as they have expanded, both in terms of personnel and office space; our networks and systems have effortlessly supported them, never limiting their ambitions.
"IT4S have been consistently professional and effective, and trusting them to handle our office and end-user IT frees us up to concentrate on our core business."
Dr. Rob Hague, Chief Technology Officer