Working Remotely But Securely
Many employees are forced to work remotely in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
For cybercriminals, this a huge opportunity as most home networks often lack the same level of security built-in to business networks. There is growing evidence that hackers use the fears about the virus to prey on people and that operating outside safe office environments opens the door to more cyber attacks.
Now that your employees work remotely, how can you ensure that your organization stays productive – and safe?
Total’s Remote Work Cyber Security Solutions
In times like this, Total Technology Solutions can help you maintain regular business operations with the best possible cyber protection.
Undoubtedly, it’s more difficult to take care of remote employees’ cyber security than it is to manage your on-site endpoints. One careless mistake of your remote employee can compromise your business data.
Total can give you:
Advanced Threat / Endpoint (Anti-virus) Protection to help protect remote workers will be offered FREE until May 30, 2020 during the COVID-19 crisis
Total is happy to offer its Advanced Threat/Endpoint (Anti-Virus) Protection solution to remote workers for free until May 30, 2020. The solution is designed to autonomously identify and thwart cyber attacks through artificial intelligence (AI). The cloud-native solution can scale at the drop of a hat, which makes it useful for protecting employees who are rapidly transitioning to a work-from-home environment on their corporate and personal devices.
*Privacy on personal devices may be a consideration as the solution will detect anything determined as a threat. Total recommends that your business maintain a No Privacy Policy on work devices.
Multi-Factor Authentication – An Important Layer of Cybersecurity Defense
Given that home networks are often less secure than business networks, Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) is vital in these new circumstances. MFA adds a layer of security for employees accessing applications both on and off the network.
Mobile Services, If Required
At this time, most of our employees have been strongly encouraged to work from home. Total is able to operate with a high level of efficiency remotely. However, if remote support is not an option, Total will provide mobile services for all your continued IT support.
You can secure your remote workers by following this checklist:
IT CHECKLIST
- Enable Local encryption
- Local admin accounts are known with strong
passwords - Limit external sharing of Cloud applications
(OneDrive, etc) - Enable MDM for remote wipe capabilities
- Review and enable remote endpoint security
tools that can be centrally reviewed and
monitored (Cylance, Cisco Scansafe, etc) - Provide ability to securely exchange files and
information externally and internally (i.e.
sharefile.com, office-365 encryption option
enabled, on-premises solution, etc) - Enable Multifactor Authentication for remote
connectivity that expires after 4-8 hours of use
Review Incident Response procedure with all
relevant parties
EMPLOYEE CHECKLIST
- Secure workspace
- Ability to lock laptop and any business
relevant information when not in use - Safely perform conversations without visitors
eavesdropping or shoulder surfing
- Ability to lock laptop and any business
- Wireless Security
- Change default Wifi Router passwords
- Enable WPA-2 or higher encryption; Strong
WEP password at minimum - Ensure your local router firmware is updated
- Personal Device security
- Updated IOT Device firmware (Smart
Thermostats, Surveillance cameras, etc) - Ensure default passwords are changed
- Updated software on all devices within your
home network (Corporate laptop, IOT devices
such as cameras and Smart Thermostats,
personal laptops/tablets, etc)
- Updated IOT Device firmware (Smart
- Review corporate policies and procedures
AWARENESS
- Corporate vs Personal
- Do not share your corporate laptop for use with family or friends.
- All corporate activities must be performed on the device provided by the organization
- Limit social media use
- Don’t reveal business itineraries, corporate info, daily routines, etc
If you have any concerns regarding the checklist or if you have any cyber security inquiries, don’t hesitate to contact us!
For a free vulnerability assessment, call Total at 888-777-8093.