How To Keep Your Data Secure When You Have A Remote Team

How To Keep Your Data Secure When You Have A Remote Team

With technology, companies and employees have the flexibility to work from anywhere. Tech makes us able to work remotely or even as a remote team, keep up-to-date with the office while traveling and facilitate a great work/life balance. It makes your work-life easy but also poses a question about data security risks as well.

Remote Working Security Risks

There are many security risks in remote work like -Hacking or social engineering, Phishing, Malware, and Ransomware, etc. So while hiring a remote team, always remember to tell them to keep cautious about these securities risks. The security of the client information and the firm’s server is the biggest concern. So your security parameters should be very high and updated.

• Phishing: Phishing is the most common and popular method to steal others’ credentials. It is a cybercrime in which attackers create a legitimate institution to induce people for providing sensitive data such as personally identifiable information, banking, and credit card details and passwords.

• Malware And Ransomeware Attacks: There is a lot of malware on the internet. Some are harmless but some can be very dangerous. Malware tricks you into installing software that allows scammers to access your files and track what you are doing. Ransomware is a type of malware that prevents users from accessing their system or personal files and demands a ransom payment in order to give your access back.

Security Tips For Remote Workers

• Create A Complex Password:

Using a complex password is one of the easiest ways to protect your important data. You should instruct your team to use different passwords for different platforms and change their passwords regularly. If possible, you should revise your password policy every few months and remind them to change passwords.

1. Use multi-factor authentication for creating a complex password.
2. Use alphanumeric characters.
3. Require a minimum of 8 characters.
4. Check new passwords against a dictionary of known-bad choices.
5. Protect your most important accounts with a unique passphrase.

Apart from strong passwords, you can allow for Two-step verification which adds another layer of security to keep your data safe from password leaks, data breaches, and phishing attacks.

• Secure Devices:

Probably, malware comes from the web or via mail and infects employee devices and systems. These security threats become the biggest challenge for working with a remote team because remote employees can be softly targeted by hackers.

There are some essential points that you should keep in mind while working with a remote team-

1. The best thing that can be done in order to avoid data leakage and security breaches, is to forbid employees to use the internet or use email for personal purposes on their work devices.
2. If it is possible, you can own and provide all the necessary devices to remote employees as per your restrictions.
3. Make sure your remote employees keep their system and application updated always.
4. Install Antivirus or Antimalware and update them before expiring. You can keep your data secure by providing security software to your remote team.

• Use Cloud Service:

Cloud service is the backbone of remote companies because it allows your employees to work from different locations. Cloud service gives you easy to access platform for real-time collaboration and file sharing. A better cloud company provides you with a secure storage place and handles security risk as well. It will help you to protect your important data from viruses and hackers.

There are a ton of affordable cloud companies and applications that even smaller companies can take advantage of, including Google Drive, OneDrive, and Dropbox.

All you need is strong passcodes to keep your cloud data safe and you will have safe virtual storage and working space.

• Avoid Public WiFi:

1. The public internet is provided by an unknown server and your data security is not guaranteed. This network can be a medium for hackers as anyone can access it easily.
2. Make sure your remote employee should never use public Wi-Fi to send you any sensitive information because these networks are easy to break for attackers.
3. When you aren’t using a device, turn off the WiFi and Bluetooth connectivity.

• Secure Connection(VPN):

Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) are a way to secure remote connections to data and provide an extra security layer on free Wi-Fi hotspots. Always connect to a VPN so that internet traffic is encrypted, especially if connected to a public wifi network.

Your remote team members need to take precautions to keep their data safe when using public Wi-Fi networks. Many remote workers enjoy setting up shops in local coffee shops or restaurants to get out of the house once in a while. They have to make sure that they are using VPNs because it creates a secure network to another network over the internet.