Video Conferencing Security Best Practices for Your Organization

Has there ever been a technology more beneficial to business continuity than video conferencing? It’s one thing to talk over the phone, through email, or via messaging, but it’s a dramatic difference to have face-to-face communication that reflects the comradery of speaking in person.

Of course, as with any emerging technology, mistakes have occurred since virtual meetings became the new norm. Granted, while some of these mistakes have been amusing, some have been downright embarrassing. It’s time we take a good look at video conferencing platforms and implement some cybersecurity best practices.

The first step to take is to sit down with a cybersecurity professional from a managed IT services provider to determine which videoconferencing tools work best for your unique business. Specifically, discuss the various features, ease of use, and the security measures provided in each.

Next, determine the best method of providing secure audio and video for your employees. A headset with a microphone works best to direct an employee’s focus on the meeting rather than his or her surroundings and to prevent any eavesdropping. For video, determine if the webcam should be part of the laptop or as an external peripheral, how it should be mounted, and decide when video recording should be turned on, shared and saved.

You should then work on establishing your company policies for videoconferencing and subsequent security protocols. Your IT partner will help guide you in determining these policies.

For example, the company videoconferencing system tends to be used only for group meetings. However, you should discuss with your managed IT service provider and set a policy on whether it is safe for employees to use Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or other apps for one-on-one conversations.

Your managed service provider (MSP) can help guide you and your employees through the specific functionality and security features of your videoconferencing software.  This way, the technology can be implemented to adhere to your policies. For example, how to mute, how to set an entry room, the functionality a host has to maintain control and how the host can remove a troublesome participant.

When particularly sensitive information is to be discussed, your cybersecurity partner can help you take additional precautions such as locking a meeting, encrypting recordings, establishing unique PINs or passwords for each participant, among other means all depending on the videoconferencing software being used.

Finally, make sure your employees are trained and proficient in implementing the security features and adhering to your company policies regarding videoconferencing.

Employees also need to be reminded to stay vigilant regarding emails including emails to participate in a videoconference. Specifically, they should follow all rules as they do against phishing attempts and not click on emails if they do not know the sender, the email has incorrect grammar or spelling, or contains an unfamiliar web link. These malicious types of emails are also why security features within the videoconferencing software should be applied.

Moving forward with videoconferencing requires the right tools, the right security, and the right expectations. Contact us at Midnight Blue. Our team of cybersecurity experts are experienced in all facets of videoconferencing. We are here to implement, guide, and support both you and your employees. It’s easy to get in touch with our team, send us an email, or call us at 412-342-3800.