Cyber Security Risks During A Pandemic

Risk management is a high priority in any business and sees much greater use during a pandemic. While everyone is trying to keep themselves safe from the contagion, there are people prepared to use this panic as a way of stealing information or disrupting your services. While it’s the job of a chief information officer to protect your assets from outside tampering, keeping track of employees remotely is difficult. There are a few steps that your employees can follow to protect themselves from external intrusion.

Remote Pandemic Preparedness

Pandemics impact your business beyond a shift to remote work and sickness prevention. There are unseen hazards to remote work that are generally overlooked since most of your workforce isn’t continually working from home. Having a proper cyber security framework in place makes all the difference when it comes to protecting the assets of your company. With the right risk management process in place, you won’t have to worry about a loss of vital data through accidents or online thieves. Here are a few steps to follow to ensure that you mitigate the possibility of cyber attacks against your employees.

Public Wi-Fi Cyber Threats

While it isn’t advisable during a pandemic threat, people still tend to work in cafes or other establishments that have public Wi-Fi. This method of work is dangerous because hackers can target your computer and steal information just by being on the same network. Since public Wi-Fi has limited encryption compared to private networks, there is a higher chance that a data breach will occur. If employees are working in a public setting, make sure they use hotspots or web connection encryption to mitigate security defense breaches. Proper encryption protects your web traffic, so make sure that your employees are using a VPN or similar masking software.

Password Protection

A strong password is especially important on a laptop to ensure everything on it is protected in the case of it being lost or stolen. Frequently change your passwords on a semi-monthly basis and make the passwords difficult to decrypt. This includes multi-characters, two-step authentication, unique passwords for different systems, and so on. Strong passwords prevent attacks from occurring both remotely and in case someone gets their hands on your laptop. Always make sure you have your passwords written somewhere safe. Sensitive information doesn’t protect itself without the right support.

Cyber Security Risk Management

Updated security measures on your employees’ laptops are a great way to handle your enterprise risk management. Remote work needs to have the right risk assessment in place to keep outside forces from making waves. This includes the most up-to-date firewalls, antivirus software, encryption, web filtering, and more. If your employees are using their laptops or desktops, make sure they have the most recent security updates in place to keep all of their vital information under wraps.

Email Encryption

Phishing emails are standard but easier to catch in an office environment when you can cross-reference them with a coworker or IT to make sure they’re legitimate or not. Install applications that encrypt your emails so outside forces aren’t able to read the contents. Train your employees on best practices needed to identify cyber risks such as phishing emails. Phishing becomes a viable threat when the majority of your workforce is working remotely because you have no physical indicators besides employee accountability to detect and prioritize threats. Keep cyber security risks at bay with the right preventative measures in place.

Train your employees on best practices needed to identify cyber risks such as phishing emails. Phishing becomes a viable threat when the majority of your workforce is working remotely because you have no physical indicators besides employee accountability to detect and prioritize threats.

Hide Your Work

Keep your screen covered in a public setting and keep video monitors on your laptop covered unless needed for a meeting. You don’t want to give potential threats a chance to see what you’re working on, where you are, or otherwise. Information can be seen and used in a short amount of time, so even leaving your screen open to go to the bathroom when in a public setting can be dangerous. Always have your screen covered or locked when away from the laptop for even a short amount of time.

Reverus can help you determine crucial cyber security preparedness indicators and how to better augment your IT security for remote work. Our expert IT services keep security threats in check and prevent a negative business impact. Start your IT off right with Reverus.