The current COVID-19 pandemic has seen a sharp increase in the number of people working from home. If you’re one of those workers, you need to look at ways to work efficiently, and safely. In this post, we’ll look at how you can set up a secure remote working environment.
Learn More About the Potential Cybersecurity Risks
You know better than to click on a link in an email. What happens if you get an excel spreadsheet from your boss to fill in your hours? Or a letter from your local doctor’s office providing you a list of Coronavirus symptoms?
Ransomeware can be delivered through a link to a malicious site. That’s only one delivery mechanism, though. It can also be delivered through an infected Word or Excel file. Don’t think you’ll get caught?
Unless you check every address carefully, you might well. Not all phishers are careless. Some do their research upfront. They match every detail on the page. The only thing that they can’t clone exactly is the email address. You can be sure they’ll get pretty close, though.
Physical Security for Company Devices
All company devices that are brought home must be properly encrypted. That way, if the device is stolen, at least the data is protected. It might also be prudent to enable remote wiping of devices.
Use Strong Passwords in Combination with Two-Factor Authentication
Make sure that any devices that you use for work require a login password. Where possible, beef up your work security by enabling two-factor authentication.
Now Check Your Wi-Fi Connection
Many cybersecurity providers have apps that allow you to scan networks. Do this before you plug in your work computer to ensure that your network is secure.
Now take the following steps to ensure that your network is as secure as possible:
- When last did you update your router’s software? Never? Then it’s time to find out how to do this.
- Do you still use the router name and password that the manufacturer’s provided? It’s time to change that too. Change the router name to something generic, like “Lounge” to fool hackers looking out for specific router models. Make the password strong and secure.
- Set up a guest network to use with your work devices. This network shouldn’t connect to any other devices in the home. IoT devices in the home could provide an access point for hackers. Your computer at home might be secure, but is your smart TV? You can’t take a chance that it is.
- Set a different password for your guest network. That way, only you have the password for the network that your computer uses. While we know our friends and family really well, it’s seldom that we can be entirely sure of their good intentions.
Final Notes
Cybersecurity is something that everyone must take seriously. The upside of taking the simple steps outlined above is that they help you secure your home network. If your company decides to disallow remote working in the future, the upgrades you’ve made will still bear fruit.
How to Set Up Your Home Workspace