What Remote Employees Need to Know About Cyber Security

A Global Information Security Survey conducted by EY showed that 44% of executives deem employees the greatest cyber security vulnerability in their organization.

The survey also revealed that 56% of businesses consider employees the most likely source of a cyber-attack. This is especially prescient for remote employees, scattered throughout the country (or world) who may not be knowledgeable when it comes to basic cyber security practices and who spend all day working on the internet. It's crucial that remote organizations train their staff in the best cyber security practices. Below are five cybersecurity practices all remote workers should be familiar with. 

Effective Password Management

Statistics show that 63% of data breaches involve weak or stolen passwords. Creating strong passwords is the first step in protecting an organization from cyber attacks. Good passwords should include a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, symbols, and numbers. Best practices dictate changing a password every 45 to 90 days and never using the same password on different sites. Many organizations, including HiringThing, rely on password management software like LastPass to ensure the ultimate in password protection. 

Protect Sensitive Data

Cyber criminals are usually after personal data, like email addresses, credit card data, customer names, and social security numbers. This information may be safe when under your control, but the risk of it falling into the wrong hands is propagated when you share it through email.

There has to be a certain protocol to be used when transferring confidential information. A secure file transfer system is a good example of a system that business owners should adopt to help them transfer information safely. Ensure employees never communicate sensitive information via email, messengers, or social media. 

Using Wi-Fi Networks

Remote work means connecting to Wi-Fi networks from homes, coffee shops, restaurants, co-working spaces, etc. Unfortunately, using public Wi-Fi networks can be very dangerous.

Connecting your device to a public Wi-Fi network potentially opens up your data to anyone else on that network. The network could have been set up by hackers with the intent to gain access to the user’s personal information.

In order to prevent business information from falling into the wrong hands, you need to train your employees on the importance of using a VPN (virtual private network) which will encrypt all data being sent and received.

Recognize Suspicious Activity

Raise awareness among your employees about common phishing emails they are likely to receive. Emphasize the importance of being watchful when it comes to emails that ask them to validate or confirm personal data by clicking on links. Such emails may lead to theft of vital business information.

Report Threats

Effective communication is part and parcel of any successful workplace. After training your employees on how to recognize potential cyber attacks, you need to explain the procedure to follow when they suspect an attack or notice any suspicious link, malware, adware, or viruses.

Additionally, make them feel safe reporting issues that pose a potential threat to your business such as an accidental click, download of suspicious content, or loss of devices that contain vital business data.

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