Cybersecurity Risks and Remote Working
With the COVID-19 pandemic slowing down, more and more employees are returning back into the workplace. However, the idea of the common “workplace” will never be the same again, and remote work has proven to be more efficient in some cases for some businesses as well. Since the workplace environment is constantly changing and evolving since the beginning of the pandemic, and will still continue to change regularly, it is important to understand potential risks you could be exposed to with cybersecurity as you are remote working.
The implications of long term remote working have included an increase in levels of cyber attacks. Awareness of this issue is the first step, then it is important to know what you can do to protect yourself from the possibility of encountering a cybersecurity attack. Working on a secure wifi network at home is very important and making sure that the wifi is part of a WPA2 encryption or better. Although it is very nice to do work from your local coffee shop, that is not a network that you know, and it could get hacked into, thereby putting your data and work at risk. Additionally, trying to stray away from doing company work on a personal device is a very key part of protecting yourself from cyber attacks. When the data is kept on a device that is not tampered with otherwise, it is less likely that it could be susceptible to cyber attacks. Lastly, spending more on cybersecurity insurance and coverage may be beneficial as a business owner given the current status of the country and remote working.
Overall, it is important to educate yourself as an employee on the risks of cybersecurity when working remotely. It is always important to keep work documents organized and private, and by maintaining that ideal it could protect you from serious cybersecurity problems in the future. Understanding the constantly evolving virtual environment is crucial in maintaining a balanced and manageable at home work environment that will keep you and the business you work for safe as well.
