Cybersecurity Essentials to Protect Remote Workers Online

As the pandemic forces many workers from the office to their home office, the world of work has been changed forever. And while working from home can have many benefits in the long-term for both staff and corporation, it’s not ideal for every business. For example, one major fear at the moment stems from having enough cybersecurity at home.

Can a business really rely upon a standard personal PC to have the robust security measures they will be used to having in the workplace normally?

It’s unlikely...

That’s why any business owner looking to help their staff work remotely online should consider the following tools. Put to good use, the following items could play an essential role in keeping your business safe.

So, what are some of the most important tools that you could fit your team up with today? What are cybersecurity must-haves? 

The cybersecurity essentials that could make remote working so much safer 

1. Set up two-factor (2FA) authentication

One of the smartest choices that you can make, to begin with, would be to set up two-factor authentication. This means that when someone logs into your company intranet, for example, they would need to gain an access code from another application.

This would mean that if they logged in on their PC, they would need to wait for something like a generated app code or indeed an SMS message to arrive. Access to this gives them the extra access they need and forms a second form of authentication. 

This means it’s that much harder for someone to log in without having access to both forms of communication. Additionally, they add another layer of security and are increasingly common for businesses to invest in for safer guarding of your most precious data. 

2. Enforce software updates

One thing that you should try and make absolutely clear to your team is that they should be using software updates all the time. If they are using Windows 10 at home and an update comes up, they should be given the incentive to make the update take place.

Make sure that you try to put some kind of roadblock in place to ensure that people are always running the most up-to-date systems that they can. This is going to help minimize the risk of people not taking enough precautions from a security perspective.

Software updates are vital for stopping brute force attacks and other such situations. This can help you to make sure that the team is working on hardware and software that is fully up to date, ensuring that there is less risk or chance of anyone being harmed and thus impacting on performance.

3. Invest in a VPN

A VPN would be a wise choice to go for when you need some extra support. VPNs, or Virtual Private Networks, offer the kind of extra protection and privacy that we need to keep us safe when working online. For anyone working from home, a VPN offers the kind of extra security that allows them to work free from their location being exposed.

We have many VPNs to pick from today, making them among the key cybersecurity essentials worth installing. If you wish to help enhance security practices then you should definitely invest in a VPN today; it could be just what you need to help protect online privacy for all of your staff, allowing them to work without limitations. 

4. Invest in a cloud

One thing to do is make sure that all of your staff are working from and uploading to a solid, secure, in-house cloud network. This is good for making sure that data cannot be lost from a phishing scam, from ransomware, and from other such events.

Cloud software is definitely an essential for your business today, with studies showing that cloud computing can improve safety and security significantly. 

This will also ensure that you have a cloud that is going to make it easier for everyone to gain access to needed items. From essential documentation to getting everyone access to an online system, you have a great many things to consider the benefits of having an in-house cloud network to work from.

A cloud network can be very useful if you want to have a solid place where everyone can work from & upload to, and also give your business protection from anyone computer holding essential data that could put others at risk.

5. Invest in scam awareness

Another cybersecurity essential isn’t so much something you install, but something you instill in your team. Many companies today are simply not prepared for cybersecurity threats, with just 5 percent of company folders protected, according to the data. 

So, make sure your staff understand the real threats posed by cybersecurity today.

• Talk to them and invest in some training courses about cybersecurity scams and work from home scams
• Present the usefulness of ‘remote access’ tools to showing them about potential phishing e-mails and messages – this can be very useful for making sure your business does not unwittingly find itself involved in a scam
• Have a bulletin board on your intranet that everyone can view that allows them to easily and effectively see the latest news they need to look out for – this might seem excessive, but the results will more than justify the investment of time and effort on your part.

It’s better to have staff fully aware of the dangers than take a blasé approach and put anyone at risk. So, keep this in mind and you can soon make a wise choice based on the most important factors in running your business. Best of luck! 

Making the right decisions could save your business in the future

With remote working likely to be long-term, if not permanent, part of the working world, it pays to have the right factors in place. We recommend that you make the intelligent choice to start protecting your staff online by using all of the above cybersecurity tools.

Each one should go a long way to making sure that everyone has the chance to stay safe as they work from home. This will allow you to avoid any kind of loss of privacy and security, ensuring that more can be done without loss of performance of security risks.