Over the years, Remote Access technology has developed to a degree where a lot of businesses can shift from an office-based to a working from home model to allow business continuity in challenging times – as many have done recently in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Unfortunately, despite global events, there are still those who will exploit others for financial gain meaning that secure working practices are more important than ever. So make sure that you consider the following if you are remote working or educate your team if they are now working from home.
Physical Security
With more people working from home, computer equipment is more likely to be left in plain sight.  Keep your laptops, PC’s, tablets and other office equipment locked away safely at the end of the working day as you would in the office to avoid attracting unwanted attention from people outside.
Device Security
Keep to the company password reset policy and change passwords often.  A password manager can help ensure that different credentials are used for different resources to make life more difficult for the bad guys.  Always use two-factor authentications where possible.
Make sure your computer is patched regularly to avoid exploitation and that anti-virus and anti-malware definitions are kept up to date.
It would also be wise to think about hard drive encryption where possible to help alleviate the risk of data loss should hardware be stolen.
Communication
Be wary of emails purporting to be from bodies such as the World Health Organisation or the NHS offering advice via suspect links or document downloads as there are known phishing campaigns going on right now.
Be aware of email from colleagues that seems unusual or out of character.  For example, if you receive an email asking for the payable bank account on an invoice to be changed, verify with the sender over Instance Message or a voice call that the email is genuine and not forged or a result of a compromised account.
Finally, just use common sense.  If something doesn’t seem right, it may not be.  Contact your IT department who will be able to help.
Stay safe!
activereach specialises in helping companies, large and small, to secure their networks, as well as detect breaches if they do occur. Call us on 0845 625 9025 or contact us to find out more.
