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Securing and Sustaining Your Remote Workforce

remote worker holding video conference

While your employees are primarily working from home, it is essential to take every precaution to protect your business, your devices, your customers, and your workforce. Here are a few of our best recommendations to safeguard and secure your remote workforce during and after the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Establish and enforce clear procedures and protocols for working remotely and using work devices.  

The process of safeguarding your remote workforce, devices, and business data starts with clearly setting and communicating expectations and requirements. 

Rules and guidelines for a remote workforce should most importantly include policies on device-usage. Any device used for work, whether it is company-supplied or a personal device, should not be used for any online gaming, shopping, or general browsing for employees or other members of their household. While it is being used to access business information, communications, and data, the device itself and the information it holds are especially vulnerable to being compromised. 

Require, or at least strongly encourage, all of your employees to secure their home Wi-Fi networks. 

A home Wi-Fi network necessitates the same precautions you would take in an office or business setting, starting with requiring a strong password before a user can connect. If a home Wi-Fi network is left open, it presents the same risks as logging into a public or open network anywhere else, such as a coffee shop. 

When Wi-Fi networks are unsecured, anyone can use it to gain access to every device on the system. Exposed devices can include business devices, such as laptops or tablets, which contain sensitive business data that could be compromised. But it also unlocks access to any other smart or internet-enabled appliance or device in the home, such as smart refrigerators, home security systems, or digital assistants, which present additional security and privacy concerns. 

Ensure firewall and security software is installed on work devices and is kept up-to-date. 

Firewall and security software must be installed, maintained, and constantly updated on every work device. These measures continuously monitor for and prevent the latest malware, spyware, and other forms of cybercrimes to keep hackers from breaching devices and stealing or otherwise compromising sensitive information.

Seek out managed IT services and support during this time. 

Your trusted IT service provider should be proactively and remotely assisting, guiding, and supporting your workforce during this time, such as updating software, securing systems, and ensuring that guidelines and policies are followed consistently. 

Total security begins with your trusted IT or managed services provider. We’re here to help you as you work through this crisis and working around the clock to ensure your business is always on. For questions, information, or support, contact our team at MidnightBlue.