Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard about social distancing. It’s one of the best preventative measures for the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Because of the advancement in technology, lockdowns didn’t completely stop everything in its tracks.
A lot of things can be done virtually. With that being said, doing things virtually presents a host of new challenges as it relates to cyber security. Here are some of the top tips for improving your cybersecurity solutions in today’s digital age.
Recommendations For Employers and Staff
This article will detail a range of tips for improving cybersecurity when working remotely. The tips will be decided into specific tips for employers and tips for staff.
Tips For Employers:
1. VPN Solutions
One of the main things every employer should be doing is making sure they are using a corporate VPN solution that is scalable to the degree you will need it. It should be capable of withstanding the number of simultaneous connections that you require.
2. Video Conferencing
Video conferencing is one of the main things that a lot of organizations have had to do throughout the pandemic. Employers need to ensure they are using secure video conferencing solutions for corporate clients.
3. Encryption
One of the best ways to ensure everything is transmitted safely and securely is by having proper encryption standards in place. You want to conduct all of the communication between the workforce in encrypted channels. Access to various applications needs to be effectively safeguarded by making it accessible only through encrypted channels. These include using a corporate VPN.
4. Multifactor Authentication
Everyone in the organization needs to be forced to use multifactor authentication. This is one of the easiest ways to prevent your organization from dealing with brute force hacks. There are plenty of ways someone can hack your business and having multi-factor authentication stops a lot of them in their tracks.
5. Prevent Direct Internet Exposure
A lot of businesses will make their Internet available to the outside world. This is an easy way to give someone access to your network. Instead of doing this, don’t allow remote system access through insecure interfaces. Stick to using secure channels instead.
6. Update Software
One of the easiest ways to make yourself vulnerable is by using outdated software or operating systems. Encourage all of your employees to patch their operating systems and even force updates in many cases. You want every computer that accesses your network to be updated. Everything should have the latest security updates and patches to keep your systems less vulnerable.
7. Vet Bring Your Own Devices
A lot of companies are switching to a BYOD approach. While this is a good way to save money upfront, it can bring a lot of problems. You’ll need to vet every device from a security standpoint. That way, you can check to ensure they are properly patched and that they have the right security software installed.
8. Get Your IT People In Place
You need to have an IT team in place along with IT resources to support all of the staff if they run into technical issues while working remotely. You’ll want systems in place so there is a proper chain of command when it comes to processing data, providing information and more.
9. Policies For Responding To Security Incidents
You want to ensure that everyone knows what to do when they notice they had a breach. Have a specific process the employees have to go through to report these things. Being proactive is the best approach.
Recommendations For The Staff:
1. Stick To Using Corporate Hardware
One of the best ways for the staff to stay secure is by sticking to using corporate hardware. Instead of using your devices, try to stick to using corporate-provided computers, tablets, and phones. Unless the company has a BYOD program and your device(s) have been vetted, it’s best to do everything from their hardware. Do not mix any personal activities with your work-related activities.
2. Only Connect Through Secure Networks
One thing you need to do is stick to connecting to secure networks. You don’t want to connect to open or free WiFi networks. Doing so will only put you in harm’s way. You want to avoid these connections because your traffic can easily be snooped on. You’ll need to encrypt that traffic through the use of a VPN if you want to avoid man-in-the-middle attacks.
3. Avoid Using Email For Sensitive Information
If at all possible, try to avoid transmitting any sensitive information over email. Email is generally not secure. You want to stick to using more secure forms of communication if possible.
4. Use Corporate Resources
If you are going to be sharing a lot of sensitive files, you’ll want to stick to using corporate Intranet resources. This is a good way to keep all of the files updated and to keep the sharing of sensitive information more secure.
5. Avoid Phishing Attempts
Every employee needs to be trained on how to spot phishing. Phishing scams are getting increasingly complex. You want to avoid any emails referencing coronavirus and look for signs that an email is a phishing attempt. Generally, these emails will ask for sensitive information and they will have spoofed emails pretending to be someone else.
6. Everything Should Be Encrypted
You want all of the data to be encrypted including backed up data you have on physical hard drives. This can protect your data if it’s lost or stolen.
7. Install Antivirus
One of the best things you can do if you aren’t a security professional yourself is to install antivirus software on your PC. This will help you detect any viruses and keep your computer free of malware and other problems.
8. Lock Your Computer
When you step away from the computer at work or even at home, you’ll want to have the screensaver come on and require a password to re-enter. This can keep your computer safe from prying eyes.
9. Don’t Share Virtual Meeting IDs
You don’t want to share any IDs of your virtual meetings. You also want to try to use public computers or channels to access meetings as it could be relatively easy to have unwanted visitors if you do.
