You want to be a flexible employer and offer your telecommuting employees a convenient work from home option. Sounds great, right?
But what you’re essentially doing is allowing your staff to move from a closed, secure work environment to a more loosely defined “home office” where there’s so much out of your control. How can you make sure that they’re taking the proper security measures to protect themselves and your company?
When it comes to IT security, it takes a team effort. Employees have the responsibility of keeping their systems secure while working from home, and you bear the responsibility of educating them on what to do and what to avoid. With that in mind, here are some crucial IT safety tips you can share with your telecommuting staff.
Don’t Scold, But Uphold Security Guidelines
The worst thing you can do is lecture your employees. Certainly, you expect them to take all necessary precautions when it comes to IT safety, but you would be surprised how many people just don’t understand how technology works.
So how can you expect them to appreciate the subtle threats that lurk throughout the internet and the peril of things so commonly used, such as unsecure smartphones or public Wi-Fi?
Education is the key. If you identify risky behaviours, and then provide security guidelines and best practices that everyone can follow, then your employees will be more likely to implement them when working from home. It will also keep them calm in the face of an IT security crisis.
It’s simply a matter of passing on these common-sense tips…
Stay Safe With The Right Software
Firewalls, virus checkers and antivirus software offer good protection, but only if they’re turned on. Many people opt to bypass these safety measures because they may restrict attachments and files or stop you from visiting certain websites because they’re unsecure. But those IT safety tools are there for a purpose. They routinely block threats and monitor your system for any suspicious software or malware.
Employer Tip: Make sure your employees download all required IT security software and encourage them to run software updates as soon as they’re available. Send routine email reminders if need be.
Lock It Up Before You Leave
You wouldn’t leave your new bike outside without locking it up. That’s just an invitation to thieves. Home computers and workspaces are no different. Security threats can lurk anywhere, especially when you share your home with others.
Anytime you step away, whether it’s to take a snack break or at the end of the day, make sure to not only lock your computer, but physically lock your workspace, so no unauthorized person can gain access to company systems.
Employer Tip: When discussing a work from home setup, advise staff to set up their workspace in a separate room (i.e. one that can be locked) versus an open space like a kitchen table or living room.
Keep The Personal and Professional Separate
When working from home, not only is it a good idea to keep your workspace separate from your home environment,it is also important to keep your devices separate. Many people think nothing of sending off a work email using their personal smartphone or Gmail account. But this means you are sending out company info using less secure devices that can easily be hacked.
For sharing company files, always use your work email and devices, never your personal ones. And remember to use different and complex passwords for each system or software login. Never use the same passwords for both personal and professional accounts.
Employer Tip: Consider setting up a secure VPN (virtual private network) for your telecommuting employees. This gives your team access to a private network that encrypts data transfers and hides user locations and IP addresses.
Best Ways to Back It Up for Telecommuting Employees
How you send and receive work files is crucial, but where you store company information is also important. That little USB stick may seem convenient, however, it can easily get misplaced, stolen, or dropped. And since anyone can plug those in, you’re facing quite a security risk if your memory stick gets into the wrong hands.
Your work and files are valuable, so it’s important to keep them safe. Instead of using your personal computer or USB stick to store company data, regularly back up your work to a secure, company-approved cloud storage system.
Employer Tip: A proper cloud-based storage system should feature remote data and activity monitoring, along with remote device encryption and data wipes, so you can control device access remotely and wipe data from lost, stolen, or compromised devices via the cloud.
Know Who To Ask For Help
Sometimes, you need reinforcements if something goes wrong. You can’t always handle security threats on your own. IT security is all about teamwork. Your employer should provide you with contact numbers and emails for your IT support desk. And if you have any concerns, it’s better to call – no question is silly, your IT support staff will be happy to help.
Employer Tip: It’s important to provide security training for your employees, to help them understand the IT risks involved in working from home. Share your company’s security policy, written in clear, simple terms.
Above are some of the best practices that telecommuting employees can follow. Share them, write them out and email them to all remote working staff.
If people have clear security guidelines and written steps, they are much more likely to adhere to them and will remain calm when faced with a security threat. This means you can relax a little, knowing that your work from home employees and your IT infrastructure are both safe.
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