The need for improved security for remote workers requires more resources; however, the ongoing economic conditions often require lowering costs. A Microsoft survey found most leaders increased budgets for security and compliance (58 and 65% noting an increase), while 81% of respondents also reported pressure to lower security costs overall. IT is therefore tasked with protecting their company’s networks from the remote work-related threats while operating with leaner budgets. Doing this effectively will require multiple strategies to make sure your network is secure with the shift to remote work. Here are three examples on how broader security can be achieved.
In this ongoing virtual environment, organizations remain highly vulnerable to the significant cybersecurity risks exposed by widespread remote work - business email compromise (BEC), in particular. How did business email compromise become such a serious threat for organizations, and why should cyber insurance be top of mind right now, as a result? Let’s dive in.
One Identity released commissioned global survey results that reveal IT and security team attitudes regarding their responses to COVID-19-driven work environment changes.
Mimecast Limited released new research which highlights the risky behavior of employees using company-issued devices. More than 1,000 respondents in countries throughout the globe were asked about their use of work devices for personal activities and how aware they are of today’s cyber risks.
LogMeIn released findings of a new LogMeIn Central report commissioned to reveal the current state of IT in the new era of remote work. The report, “The Surprising New State of IT in a Remote World: Tackling Challenges and Redefining IT for Future Success” was conducted in partnership with Lab42 and quantifies the impact of COVID-19 on IT roles and priorities for small to medium-sized businesses.
While traditionally seen solely as a private problem, domestic violence has the potential to significantly impact workplace safety and productivity, and as the line of work-home-life balance continues to blur for many during COVID-19, companies should be on top of their domestic violence response plans to aid and support employees.
Remote work has left many organizations lagging in productivity and revenue due to remote access solutions. Nearly one-fifth (19%) of IT leaders surveyed said they often or always experience network performance and latency issues when using legacy remote access solutions, with an additional 43% saying they sometimes do. Those issues have resulted in a loss of productivity for 68% of respondents and a loss of revenue for 43%, according to Perimeter 81's 2020 State of Network Security Report.
Criminals are leveraging elevated interest in COVID-19 to send emails to unsuspecting people to infect computers with ransomware, malware or other computer viruses. And why not? According to Forbes, the COVID-19 crisis has turned the U.S. workforce into a work-from-home army, giving cybercriminals new, less secure, access points for cyber viruses and phishing attacks, revealing vulnerabilities in cybersecurity strategies for the coronavirus crisis. And since there’s a tremendous curiosity for coronavirus information — people are more likely to click without checking the credibility of the source.
Today, as an increasing number of organizations, including top tech companies like Google, Twitter and Facebook, have announced extended remote work plans, IT teams must ensure employee devices are secured to sustain the long haul. With IT burnout high, user awareness low, and malicious activity rising, this is often easier said than done. Here are top three tips for IT teams to ensure employee devices remain secure as remote work looms.
