Data Safety during Coronavirus While Working from Home

Table of Contents

INTRO

Quickly spreading Coronavirus (COVID-19) has infected lots of people across the world; there are more than 1.6 million cases. This outbreak of Coronavirus originated from Wuhan, a big city located in the central area of China has been declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) by the World Health Organization.

In fighting against this Coronavirus outbreak, authorities at all levels have, in addition to giving emergency medical support to persons affected by the virus, forced quarantines & restricted travel & outdoor actions.

More than three billion people around the globe were living under lockdown for the past few days as the administration stepped up their hard work against the Coronavirus pandemic, which has left more than 150,000 people dead globally.

You may want to take a look at the Coronavirus COVID-19 : Live World MAP

As Coronavirus cases increase, corporate across the world have started taking protective measures to hold the spread of COVID-19. Big Companies have stepped up their employee safety efforts as the epidemic spreads.

Employees working from home can be accessing or transmitting business trade secrets in addition to private information of persons. Unsuitable exposure of either type of data can lead to major adverse consequences for a corporation. Exposure of trade private business details can possibly cause significant business loss.

Exposure of personal information can potentially cause state or federal data breach notification laws, and result in major liabilities for a corporation in addition to expanded identity theft issues for folks. The threat is not only an online concern – physical safety is at issue as well. Illegal access to printed copies of sensitive documents could lead to added exposures.

If you’re on the IT team, you’re possibly used to preparing laptops for staff to use distantly, and setting up mobile phones with access to agency data.

But worldwide concerns over the current Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak and the need to keep at-risk employees away from the workplace, means that a lot of companies can soon and abruptly end up with lots more staff working from house. It’s essential not to let the safety measures intended to protect the physical health of your employee’s turns into a threat to their Cybersecurity health at the same time.

Significantly, if you have a colleague who wants to work from house specifically to stay away from the workplace, then you can no longer use the tried-and-tested approach of getting them to come in once to gather their new laptop & phone, and to get the on-site training that you hope will make them a safer Teleworkers.

You can end up needing to set remote users up from scratch, totally remotely, & that might be something you’ve not done lots of in the past.

So here are our tips for working from home safely.

Begin with Cybersecurity basics

Keep your safety software up to date.

Always use passwords on all your devices & apps.

Ensure the passwords are long and strong: at least 12 characters that are a mix of numbers, symbols, and lowercase & uppercase letters.

Secure your private network

Begin with your router. Turn on encryption (WPA2 or WPA3). Encryption run information sent over your network so a stranger can’t read it. WPA2 & WPA3 are the most advanced encryption standards to protect information sent over a wireless network. No WPA3 or WPA2 option on your router? Try updating your router software, then check again to see if WPA2 or WPA3 are accessible. If not, consider replacing your router.

Securely store sensitive files

When there’s unauthorized business, need to transfer private information from workplace to home, keep it out of view and under lock & key. If you don’t have a file cabinet at the house, use a locked room. For more tips, read regarding physical safety.

Dispose of sensitive data securely

Don’t just throw it in the garbage or recycling bin. Shred-it. The official procedure you no longer need can be a treasure to identity thieves if it comprises personal information about clientele or employees.

Follow your employer’s safety practices. Your house is now an extension of your place of work. So, follow the protocols that your company has implemented.

Use a VPN

A virtual private network (VPN) creates a safe path for your internet traffic, stopping others from snooping, or tracking what you do. VPNs are regular among bigger businesses that have workers accessing a corporate network or server.

For small businesses and persons, however, there’s still a huge benefit to keeping your individual and corporation information safe and away from prying eyes.

Be Extra Cautious with corporation Devices

Using a corporation device, such as a laptop, for private use is not a clever decision in general. But when workers are working from house, they may be more likely to check private email or social media accounts, leaving the door wide open for cybercriminals. At a time like this, the adverse truth is we are likely to see hackers exploit the COVID-19 health fright. For example, malicious individuals can set up fake COVID-19 websites, spoof government & healthcare organizations in phishing email attempts, and make social media scams around false fundraising. If your workers fall victim to these threats when checking their private email or other accounts through their work laptop or mobile device, it can put your whole organization at risk.

Other security precautions to take during Coronavirus while working from Home

Uncertainty will obviously arise with you working from home. Confidently, your organization has outlined the diverse roles & responsibilities among you, coworkers, managers, & IT section.

When you are working remotely for a long time, ensure you recognize who is liable for updates. Are you supposed to keep the whole thing up to date, or can your IT section do it for you? Your system may need extra security software now that it has left the safer setting of your organization’s network. Check with your IT section on whether you must install additional solutions: Will you need a safety program for your Windows PC or your Mac.