The Mother Tongue June 2025
Cybersecurity Edition: One Click Away From Chaos This June 2025 Edition of the Mother Tongue dives into the real-world impact
From Jaguar Land Rover’s global cyberattack to Microsoft’s upcoming Windows 10 end-of-life, plus updates on our own performance, onboarding, and support improvements, this September 2025 edition of The Mother Tongue shares insights to help organisations stay resilient and future-ready.
Microsoft 365 has a built in way of measuring how secure your systems are. This is called a 365 security score. Think of it similar to a credit score, but instead of measuring your financial health, it measures how well your Microsoft 365 infrastructure is protected.
The score takes into account a variety of aspects including:
Every business using Microsoft 365 gets a score based off of a number of these things. The average score for companies the size of Mother is 47% and we are proud to share that Mother scores way above this at 95.09% (1004.13/1056). Significantly higher than the industry average, showing that we are operating at a much higher level of security than most.
Why does this matter?
We know we talk a lot about cybersecurity, but this score proves that we don’t just talk, we know exactly what we’re doing. Achieving such a high Security Score shows that we follow best practices and take protecting both our systems and our customers’ data seriously. It’s a clear sign that you can trust us to get cybersecurity right.
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has been hit by a significant cyberattack, highlighting once again the growing risks businesses face and the importance of strong cyber defences. Some key points from the incident are below.
Production shutdown extended: JLR now plans to keep its factories offline until at least October 1, 2025.
Massive financial burden: Without a completed cyber insurance policy in place, JLR is bearing the full cost of disruption. Projected losses include over £3.5 billion in revenue and £1.3 billion in gross profits if the shutdown persists.
Supply chain and wider impact: Tens of thousands of jobs across JLR’s network are at risk. Smaller suppliers, local vendors, and dealerships are especially vulnerable, relying heavily on JLR for revenue. Many are already facing halted operations, cashflow problems, and layoffs. The UK government may buy parts from suppliers to help maintain stability, showing how disruptions at a large company ripple through the supply chain.
Attackers go dark: The hacker group Scattered Lapsus$ Hunters claimed the breach but have since disappeared, though experts warn the threat may persist.
Recovery in progress: JLR is carefully bringing systems back online with expert help, but smaller businesses may take longer to recover without similar support.
The Lesson: Resilience & Planning Matter
Even the best prevention can fail. What separates businesses that recover from those that collapse is how prepared and quick they are to respond:
JLR’s experience shows it clearly: resilience is essential.
Microsoft will end support for Windows 10 on 14 October 2025, so now is a great time to think about upgrading to Windows 11. To make the transition easier for small and medium-sized businesses, HP and Microsoft are running a limited-time upgrade programme that’s both budget friendly and environmentally responsible.
What’s on offer:
The promotion runs until 14 October 2025 and is open to small and medium businesses with up to 500 employees (claims capped at 250 devices).
If you’re considering a hardware refresh or simply planning ahead for Windows 10 end-of-support, this programme can offset costs and support your environmental commitments at the same time.
Moving to a new IT partner can feel daunting, and the handover is rarely straightforward.
Common hurdles include:
At Mother, to make the process as smooth as possible, every new customer is assigned a dedicated Onboarding Coordinator. This single point of contact coordinates the entire transition, keeps communication clear, and ensures nothing is overlooked.
Changing IT provider can be stressful, especially if a previous supplier is reluctant to cooperate. However, with Mother you can expect a seamless, well-managed transition that lets you focus on running your organisation, not your technology.
What our customers have to say
“When we first considered switching IT providers, we were apprehensive. Changing providers often comes with hidden challenges and disruption to staff and systems, but Mother Technologies made the process far easier than we expected.
Having historic challenges with previous providers we were aware of the possible complications and did extensive research to ensure we selected the provider that was the best fit for ELCAP.
Mother’s team handled everything professionally. They assigned a dedicated Onboarding Executive who guided us through every step of the 6–8 week transition, keeping communication clear, proactive, and reassuring us throughout.
They tackled the usual headaches head-on ensuring all devices were properly configured, removing outdated management agents, and implementing crucial security improvements right from the start. Their team was flexible and responsive, addressing issues immediately and keeping our operations running smoothly.“
Lara Ritchie, Business Manager, ELCAP
You may have heard of Elon Musk’s Starlink, but what is it, and how can it support businesses?
How Starlink Works
Starlink delivers internet via satellites orbiting the Earth rather than using traditional underground cables. A small dish installed at your home or office receives the signal, providing internet access in locations where fibre or other wired connections aren’t available.
Benefits for Businesses
Things to Keep in Mind
Starlink is not a full replacement for fibre. Speeds and latency can fluctuate, and heavy usage may impact performance. It’s most effective in locations with limited connectivity or as a backup solution to maintain business continuity.
We’re proud to announce that Mother Technologies has received full accreditation as a Real Living Wage Employer.
Achieving this status involved a detailed review of our pay policies and independent verification that every member of our team earns at least the Real Living Wage—a rate calculated each year to reflect the real cost of living. Emma, our financial controller, led the process from start to finish, gathering the required evidence and guiding us through the application.
This recognition reflects our continued commitment to fair pay and our dedication to supporting the talented individuals who make up our strong and valued team.
Over the years, Mother has been on a long journey, steadily migrating all our legacy business applications into a single ERP platform, Boom.
In the next quarter, we will be migrating our legacy Ticketing System and bringing it into the fold.
With so many modules already live, we have become accustomed to the migration process. Test, test, test, and once proven, test again! Every simulation catches something new, and despite our best efforts, something won’t raise its ugly head until we’re live. Teething problems will exist, but no pain, no gain!
Boom unites all our business functions into a single pane of glass. It creates transparency between departments, reduces wasted time and resources, and boosts overall efficiency.
The Ticketing module has been extensively customised to satisfy our business needs. Deep SLA categorisations linked to customer agreements will bring about significant enhancements that customers will recognise in our response times and processes. Alarms and notifications escalate tickets in danger of breaching service levels, and the entire system’s efficiency benefits can only result in a better customer support experience, which is why organisations come to Mother in the first place – customer service is everything!
We will keep you informed as we approach our go-live date and strive to ensure the support you depend upon is not disrupted.
For Mother, the summer break is one of the busiest, and most important, times of the year. We work closely with many of Scotland’s independent schools, preparing IT so that everything runs smoothly for the start of term.
Our approach is simple but effective: we tailor solutions to each school’s needs. From setting up new laptops and classroom devices to updating software, securing networks, and ensuring backups are in place, we make sure technology is ready for staff and students alike.
Over the years, we’ve built a strong understanding of what schools need. Each term teaches us something new, from what works well, what to watch out for, and how to adapt to each school’s way of working. This experience means we can spot potential issues before they become problems, streamline processes, and provide solutions that fit each school’s routines.
Whether it’s planning software updates, rolling out new devices, or preparing networks for the busiest days, our team uses years of knowledge to make each new term smoother, calmer, and more efficient than the last. By learning from past challenges and successes, we continually improve our approach, helping schools focus on teaching and learning rather than worrying about IT.
Mother Technologies is looking for a Systems Engineer to join our support team in Aberdeen.
The role will suit an enthusiastic and personable IT professional with excellent technical and customer service skills.
Help us find the talent and spread the word to those you know that fit the bill.
Learn more here: Systems Engineer – Aberdeen
“Despite the heightened financial challenges UK organisations have been subjected to, we are pleased to advise that Mother Technologies remains strong and is set to surpass our 2024 performance.
Our financial year-end is 30th September, and we are tracking an increased turnover upwards of £3.3 million.
We must thank the many new clients we have welcomed this year, particularly across the Education and Charitable sectors, and our long-standing customers, many of whom have been with us for so long they feel like family!
We support fabulous organisations of all shapes and sizes and are fortunate to have a great team at Mother who are focused on supporting them. Our results reflect the relentless hard work of our team and the trust placed in us to deliver.
We look forward to continuing warm relationships in supporting all our clients throughout the rest of the year and wish you all much success.
Thank you!”
Steve Redhead, Managing Director
Cybersecurity Edition: One Click Away From Chaos This June 2025 Edition of the Mother Tongue dives into the real-world impact
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