The Houston Tech Brief

CinchOps Technology Solutions

CinchOps breaks down the cybersecurity threats, IT decisions, and technology shifts that impact small and mid-sized businesses the most. The Houston Business Tech Report delivers the kind of straight talk Houston business owners need to protect their operations, cut through the noise, and spend smarter on technology. No jargon. No fluff. Just what matters to your bottom line.

Play

Open in

20 episodes
Avg 2 min
English

Episodes 20

Newest Oldest Longest

All20 Unplayed20 In progress0 Played0

#65
Saturday · 3 min
What Should Be in a Managed IT Contract? 4 Steps for Houston Businesses
A managed IT contract gets signed in a good week. Read it for the week you want to leave. In this episode of The Houston Tech Brief from CinchOps, we walk through what should be in a managed IT contract, in 4 steps. We searched 3,391 written Google reviews of Houston-area IT providers for contract words and read every match by hand. 15 described a contract term or a failed exit, and 8 of those were one-star. Not one mentioned a notice window, a service credit or a handover of passwords. What you will hear: - Step 1: the 3 dates to find first - start, end and the last day to stop the renewal - Why a Houston business should ask for a term that ends in the first 4 months of the year, outside hurricane season (June 1 to November 30, peak September 10) - Step 2: leaving without proving fault, and the handover list of logins and documentation you should get back - Step 3: what a service level agreement should measure, report and pay when a target is missed - Step 4: what a flat per-user price includes, and who decides what counts as a project Billing surprises and hidden fees lead every complaint theme in the CinchOps Houston MSP Review Index, at 26.3% of negative reviews. This episode is not legal advice. Have a Texas business attorney read any agreement of real size before you sign it. Read the full guide: https://cinchops.com/what-should-be-in-a-managed-it-contract/ CinchOps provides managed IT support and cybersecurity for small and mid-sized businesses across the Houston metro area, with no long-term contracts, no hidden fees and no cancellation penalties. Call 281-269-6506 or visit cinchops.com. Read more: What Should Be in a Managed IT Contract? Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/ If you run a water system in the Houston area, take the free help. If you run a business, copy the playbook.
- Transcript
- Chapters
#64
September 13 · 2 min
Houston Tech Brief: Contractors Lose 18% of Every Project Hunting for Data
Construction companies say they spend 18% of project time just searching for data, and general contractors rank data security as their top barrier to going digital. In this episode of The Houston Tech Brief, CinchOps breaks down Procore's How We Build Now survey of 1,005 builders and owners and pairs it with our own Houston Area Security Index scan of 648 local construction firms, where 36% had a leaked employee login and 91% had internet-facing services an attacker could find. We cover why moving every drawing and pay application into one platform is only half the job, the three-step order that works (consolidate, lock down with individual logins and MFA, back up outside the flood zone), and why hurricane season makes that last step urgent for Houston contractors. Read the full analysis at cinchops.com or call CinchOps at 281-269-6506 Read more: Construction Data Security: What Procore’s 1,005-Firm Survey Means for Houston Construction Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/ If you run a water system in the Houston area, take the free help. If you run a business, copy the playbook.
- Transcript
- Chapters
#63
September 13 · 2 min
Houston Tech Brief: Your Phishing Click Rate Is Hiding the Real Risk
Your company's phishing test report shows fewer clicks than last year. That does not mean your team is harder to fool. In this episode of The Houston Tech Brief from CinchOps, we break down Pistachio's Phishing Behaviour Report 2026, which followed a full year of phishing tests at 648 organizations covering 123,692 employees. You'll learn: - The three numbers every phishing report should show: click rate, leak rate and report rate - Why 12% of employees entered a password on a fake page at least once in a year, about 6 people in a 50-person company - Why click rates rise around the six-month mark, and why password leaks then dropped 41% between month 6 and month 12 - Why one reported phishing email can protect the whole company - Which industries click the most, give up the most passwords and report the least Read the full breakdown at cinchops.com, or call CinchOps at 281-269-6506. Read more: Phishing Click Rate Is Not Enough: Data for Houston Firms Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/ If you run a water system in the Houston area, take the free help. If you run a business, copy the playbook.
- Transcript
- Chapters
#62
September 12 · 2 min
Houston Alert: Microsoft’s Biggest Patch on Record - Don’t Delay
Microsoft's September 8, 2026 release carried 974 security fixes, the largest we have tracked. Attackers were already exploiting 2 of them, and neither was rated Critical. Here is why putting off updates is a real risk for Houston businesses. In this episode of The Houston Tech Brief: - The severity trap: Microsoft rated 113 fixes Critical, but the 2 flaws attackers were already using on release day were both rated Important. A Critical-first approach would have missed both. - How fast attacks arrive: across 371 confirmed cases in our index, 71% of exploited flaws were under attack within 30 days of the fix, and 95% within a year. - Why it matters: the Verizon 2026 Data Breach Investigations Report found 31% of breaches start with software vulnerabilities, ahead of stolen passwords. - The Gulf Coast timing: the release landed 2 days before September 10, the peak of Atlantic hurricane season, when a storm can close an office on short notice. Read the full analysis at cinchops.com, see the data at https://cinchops.com/houston-area-patch-index/, or call CinchOps at 281-269-6506. The Houston Tech Brief is a short podcast from CinchOps, a managed IT and cybersecurity provider based in Katy, Texas, serving small and mid-sized businesses across the Houston metro area. Read more: Why Houston Businesses Cannot Afford to Delay Microsoft Updates Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/ If you run a water system in the Houston area, take the free help. If you run a business, copy the playbook.
- Transcript
- Chapters
#61
September 1 · 3 min
Project Watershed 250: Tech Giants Mobilize to Shield Texas Water
On August 31, 2026, Texas Cyber Command and the Office of the National Cyber Director launched Project Watershed 250: 12 companies, including Microsoft, Google Cloud, Amazon Web Services and Dragos, donating red team testing, system hardening, and AI-assisted defense to Texas water utilities for 6 months. This episode covers what triggered it. In late July, a coordinated attack disrupted more than 30 Minnesota water and wastewater utilities in about 48 hours, and in Braham, a town of 1,700, crews ran the treatment plant by hand for 2 hours. We look at why a donated program is the tool Texas reached for, what the Congressional Research Service found about compliance and funding, and the 5 steps any Houston business can run on its own network without waiting for a federal program. Read more: Texas Water Cybersecurity: Inside Texas Cyber Command's Project Watershed 250 Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/ If you run a water system in the Houston area, take the free help. If you run a business, copy the playbook.
- Transcript
- Chapters
#60
August 16 · 2 min
Houston Tech Brief: Ransomware Is Shopping Houston's Medical Practices
A Houston pediatric hearing center is notifying nearly 30,000 people after a ransomware group claimed 540 GB of its data - and it's the third Houston-area healthcare provider tied to a cyber incident in six months. In this episode: the full timeline from the March 2026 intrusion to breach letters 15 weeks later, why ransomware crews are deliberately targeting specialty practices instead of hospitals (hospital-grade data, small-business-grade defenses), what IBM's 2026 report says a healthcare breach now costs ($6.64 million on average), and the five basics that change the outcome: MFA, restore-tested backups, network segmentation, edge patching, and a one-hour incident tabletop. The group's playbook was published eight months before this breach. The gap between knowing and doing is the whole story. Full breakdown: cinchops.com | 281-269-6506 CinchOps is a managed IT and cybersecurity provider in Katy, Texas, serving small and mid-sized businesses across the Houston metro. Read more: Texas Hearing Institute Data Breach: What Houston Should Know (2026) Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#59
August 13 · 2 min
Houston Tech Brief: The 4 Things a Company Loses When It Goes 100% Remote
A fully remote company doesn't have a network anymore. It has one network per employee - the home router, the apartment Wi-Fi - and none of them answer to the business. In this episode of The Houston Tech Brief, we break down the 4 things a company loses when it loses the office: the network, the backup fallback, the watchful eyes, and the walk-up help desk - and the specific replacement for each one. We cover the FBI's 2025 warning about criminals hijacking end-of-life home routers, why Verizon found company credentials on 46% of unmanaged devices, how a software-defined network puts every remote employee back inside one secure perimeter, why Microsoft's own Services Agreement tells you to back up your own data (a deleted user's OneDrive is gone in 30 days), and the account-takeover signals that antivirus never sees - impossible travel, new mail-forwarding rules, and mass file deletions. Plus: what hurricane season means for a Houston team spread across Katy, Cypress, and Sugar Land, and why distributed can be a continuity advantage if you build it cloud-first. Read the full article at cinchops.com, or call 281-269-6506 for a free security assessment for your Houston area business. Read more: IT Support for Remote Teams: Give Your 100% Remote Company a Network Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#58
August 9 · 2 min
The AI Your Team Already Uses - A Four-Phase Security Roadmap
Somebody on your payroll pasted company data into a chatbot this month, and no tool you own said a word. This episode covers the AI security roadmap for Houston businesses: four phases, in order, and why the cheapest one - the written policy - is the one that protects you least. In this episode: Shadow AI showed up in 43% of breached organizations in IBM's 2026 Cost of a Data Breach report, more than double last year's 20%, with those breaches averaging $5.39 million The ownership problem nobody talks about: 72% of employees using AI on work devices are signed in with personal email, so when they quit, the chat history - and whatever got pasted into it - leaves with them The four phases: inventory the AI already in use, write a one-page acceptable-use policy, enforce it with access controls, then re-check quarterly with a dated log The phase almost everyone skips: among organizations breached through their own AI, 92% had no access controls What Texas House Bill 149 changed in January: no small-business exemption, a 60-day cure process, and a free federal standard (NIST's Generative AI Profile) written into the law as a defense Read more: AI Security Roadmap for Houston Businesses: The Four-Phase Guide Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#57
August 8 · 2 min
Houston Tech Brief: Construction Tops Security Index
Houston construction firms just did something nobody expected: they outscored lawyers, CPAs, and manufacturers on cybersecurity. CinchOps scanned 648 commercial construction and trades firms across the Houston metro from the outside - the same view an attacker has - as the fourth industry in our Houston Area Security Index. Construction leads at a 1.71 GPA, the best of the four industries we've measured. But the win comes with a catch: the trades aren't defending better, they're just showing attackers less. And 41.7% of construction firms still fail, with half running services with no encryption and nearly half unable to prove an email from their own domain is real - the exact gap that turns a spoofed invoice into a wire fraud claim. In this episode: the full four-industry rankings, why a smaller footprint beats a bigger budget, where attackers are already hitting the trades, and the four fixes most firms can knock out in days. Read the full analysis at https://cinchops.com/houston-construction-security-index-2026/ and see the complete dataset at https://cinchops.com/houston-area-security-scorecard/ Want your own letter grade? The external security assessment is free for Houston-area businesses: https://cinchops.com/contact/ or call 281-269-6506. The Houston Tech Brief is produced by CinchOps, a managed IT services provider in Katy, Texas, serving small and mid-sized businesses across the Houston metro area. Read more: Houston Construction Cybersecurity Leads the CinchOps Security Index Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#56
August 8 · 3 min
Why QuickBooks Is Slow: Look at the Machine Holding Your Data Files First
This Houston Tech Brief from CinchOps explains why QuickBooks can be fast on one PC and painfully slow on others: the company file is often hosted on a regular desktop that isn’t built or maintained to serve accounting software for a team. The episode outlines the two real fixes: put the company file on a proper server that’s looked after, or move QuickBooks to a hosted environment where your team connects remotely for a per-user fee. Which option is best depends more on who wants to own a server than on price. It also warns that Intuit is retiring older QuickBooks Desktop versions - e.g., 2023 lost support at the end of May 2026. CinchOps reviews your setup, recommends the right solution, and manages the move. We support construction, CPA, and oil & gas firms across Houston, Katy, Sugar Land, and Cypress at a flat monthly rate per computer. Visit cinchops.com or call 281-269-7000. Read more: QuickBooks Database Server Manager: Why Multi-User Is Slow Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#55
August 8 · 2 min
Houston's Hidden Growth: What Small Businesses Need to Know
Houston added 126,720 people in a single year - the biggest one-year gain of any metro in America. But that is the wrong number to plan your IT around. In this episode of The Houston Tech Brief, we dig into a Census dataset almost nobody in Houston has read: business applications, county by county. The 10-county Houston metro filed 149,902 new business applications in 2025 - and Texas filed 544,133, the highest in the 21 years the county data covers. Houston holds about 25% of the state's population but files nearly 28% of its new business applications, a pace roughly 14% above the national average. Harris County alone is up 67% since 2019. Why does that matter for your IT? Because a new resident brings your network nothing, while a new company arrives with laptops, email, payroll software, and a network someone has to run. We also share what 4,289 Google reviews of 140 Houston IT providers reveal: responsiveness is the #1 thing businesses praise (22.4%), and speed is the first thing growth breaks - usually somewhere between 20 and 50 employees. The full analysis, county-by-county numbers, and our 8-point growth-readiness checklist are at cinchops.com. If your headcount has moved more than 20% in two years, call 281-269-6506 and we'll tell you which checks you're already passing. CinchOps - managed IT and cybersecurity for Houston small businesses, based in Katy, Texas. Read more: Houston Is Adding Businesses Faster Than It Adds People. Is Your IT Ready? Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#54
August 4 · 3 min
Houston Patch Index: How to Prioritize Security Patches
This is the Houston Tech Brief from CinchOps. We published the Houston Area Patch Index, which tracks every security advisory major software vendors have released since January 2022 - a total of 38,446 advisories. Key finding: in 2026 so far vendors published 7,442 advisories, 4,753 of them rated critical or high. Anything that touches your system should jump the queue, because a medium-rated flaw under active attack is worse than a critical one that’s never been exploited. A vendor's "clean" timing often means no public disclosure program, not a flawless product - you can’t patch what a vendor never tells you about. We handle patch prioritization for Houston businesses. Full index at synchops.com or call 281-269-6506. Read more: Houston Business Guide: How to Prioritize Security Patches Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#53
August 4 · 3 min
AI-Powered Attacks Surge - Data Breach Costs Spike to $6M
IBM's 2026 Cost of a Data Breach report (21st edition) finds AI on both sides of the ledger: attackers and defenders. More than one in four malicious attacks were AI-driven - a 56% jump in a year - and AI-driven breaches cost about $6.04 million versus $5.03 million for other breaches. Companies that heavily use security AI saved an average of $1.93 million per breach and closed incidents 65 days faster, yet only 36% use it heavily and just 18% apply AI to vulnerability scanning. CinchOps helps Houston businesses address these risks; full breakdown at sinchops.com or call 281-269-6506. Read more: IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report 2026: The AI Tipping Point Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#52
August 4 · 2 min
Houston Tech Brief: Data Breach Costs Hit Record $4.99M - What It Means for Local Industry
This episode of the Houston Tech Brief from CinchOps breaks down IBM’s 2026 Cost of a Data Breach Report: the global average breach cost reached $4.99 million (up 12% in one year), and the U.S. average is $11.5 million. The episode emphasizes that the industry-specific changes - public sector costs up 37% in two years, entertainment up 31%, and a smaller gap between the most- and least-expensive industries - are the most noteworthy findings. For Houston, sectors that drive the local economy (energy, industrial, professional services, transportation, and financial services) dipped last year and then climbed back, increasing ongoing risk. The episode notes 39% of breached organizations were targeted and 41% of attacks included threats to publicly shame companies. Full analysis is at synchops.com or call 281-269-6506. Read more: Data Breach Cost by Industry: 2024 to 2026 Trends Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#51
August 3 · 2 min
Houston MSP Review Index: The Truth Behind Five-Star Ratings
CinchOps has released the Houston MSP Review Index, analyzing 4,289 Google reviews across 140 Houston-area IT companies with quarterly refreshes. The data exposes rating inflation - 94.6% of reviews are five stars and most providers cluster at 4.8+ - making average scores a poor quality signal. The report also overturns common assumptions: businesses rarely fire IT firms over technology. The top complaints are billing surprises and hidden fees (18%), followed by contract lock-in (12.3%). Praise echoes those themes in reverse, highlighting service and billing transparency as the real differentiators. Read more: The Houston MSP Review Index Is Live: What the Data Means Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#50
July 31 · 2 min
AI-Driven Patchstorm: Microsoft Posts 644 Vulnerabilities in July 2026
This is the Houston Tech Brief from CinchOps. In July 2026 Microsoft published 644 security vulnerabilities in a single month, far outpacing prior months and setting a new record. Across 24 major vendors we track, 2026 patch volume is running about 2.5 times last year’s pace, and the share of high or critical flaws has risen to almost two-thirds. AI-powered scanners are uncovering long-standing code flaws that humans never had time to review. Every published patch provides a roadmap for attackers, and the same AI tools can speed exploit development. The most dangerous exposure is the gap between patch release and patch installation; many organizations still run unpatched software months or years after fixes are released. Cinch Ops offers flat-rate per-endpoint patching for Houston businesses, prioritizing inventory, testing, deployment, and verification based on what attackers are actually exploiting. Full analysis and charts at synchops.com or call 281-269-6506. Read more: Microsoft Patched 644 Vulnerabilities in One Month. AI Just Rewrote the Patching Math for Good. Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#49
July 31 · 1 min
Your MSP Just Got Acquired — What Changes for Your IT Service?
We analyzed over 4,000 Google reviews across 140 Houston-area IT providers and found many clients report service declines after mergers or acquisitions. Consolidation is accelerating - Omdia tracked 169 MSP acquisitions in 2025, often driven by private equity. Client reviews point to five common changes: slower response times, loss of familiar engineers, forced tool migrations, and other service disruptions. If service metrics stay degraded beyond 90 days, begin vetting replacements while your notice window is still open. Read the full 90-day guide on our website. Read more: What Happens to IT Support After Your MSP Is Bought Out Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#48
July 30 · 2 min
Why Houston Businesses Fire Their IT Partnerss: Billing Surprises Top the List
CinchOps analyzed 4,289 Google reviews across 140 Houston-area managed IT providers and found a clear pattern. The top complaint - found in 18% of negative reviews - was billing surprises and hidden fees, followed by contract lock-in and poor value for price. The episode explains why technology is rarely the biggest issue and what business owners should watch for when choosing an MSP. Before signing, ask what the monthly fee covers and what is billed separately, request to see exit terms before entry terms, confirm guaranteed response times and penalties for missed commitments, and meet the specific account owner who will manage your business. Read more: How to Choose an IT Company in Houston: 7 Green and 7 Red Flags Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#47
July 9 · 2 min
Katy Businesses Outperform - but Two Simple Fixes Could Stop Major Attacks
A CinchOps scan of Katy-area businesses found the metro outperformed overall, but revealed two major weaknesses: 68.6% failed network security and 67.1% failed DNS health. Across 70 firms, 41.4% scored a D or F; law firms were hit hardest on DNS (87% failed) and manufacturers on network settings. Only 7.1% passed DNS health, showing email authentication is widely missing. The good news: these are configuration problems that are fast to fix. Tighten firewall rules, close unused ports, set SPF, DKIM and DMARC correctly, enable multi-factor authentication, and keep backups outside the Gulf Coast flood zone. CinchOps, a local managed IT provider, offers rapid helpdesk support and free assessments - visit cinchops.com/contact or call 281-269-6506. Read more: Katy Beat the Houston Metro on Security. Two Categories Still Need Work Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters
#46
July 9 · 3 min
Houston Email Front Door Wide Open: 59.9% Fail DNS Health
Most Houston businesses wrongly trust their inbox spam filters while attackers exploit missing DNS email protections. CinchOps scanned 2,420 local businesses and found 59.9% scored a D or F on DNS health, with only 10.2% passing and 68.7% of law firms failing. The episode lays out the fixes - set SPF, DKIM and DMARC correctly (move DMARC from none to reject), enable multi-factor authentication, and check forwarding rules - and points to CinchOps managed services and a free assessment at sinchops.com or 281-269-6506. Read more: Email Security Is Not Your Spam Filter. Here Is What 2,420 Houston Scans Reveal. Connect with us: Website link: https://cinchops.com/ Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/CinchOps/ LinkedIn link: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cinchops/ Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/cinchopsit/ X: https://x.com/cinchopsit YouTube link: https://www.youtube.com/@CinchOps Have Questions? Want to discuss further? Reach out to Shane Stevens, CEO\Founder, CinchOps Technology Solutions: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanewstevens/
- Transcript
- Chapters

Showing 1–20 of 20 episodes