The COVID-19 pandemic demanded that companies make a quick transition to remote work and that they shift their focus in order to serve customers via digital channels. Accompanying this change, cybersecurity teams are being asked to mitigate new risks while helping to create value in the next normal.
According to McKinsey, the digital response to the COVID-19 crisis has created opportunities for attackers to exploit the gaps opened up when your employees are working in various locations. In fact, Google reported that more than 18 million malware and phishing emails related to the coronavirus were detected on its service each day in April.
And the situation is only further intensified with a mixed approach – as some staff head back to the office and others continue to work at home. Below, we’ve set out a few guidelines to prevent cyber criminals from exploiting your new work environment.
Visibility: Your IT department needs to know and understand everything employees are doing. The goal should be to develop a single, integrated security framework that simplifies management and expands visibility and control. Mobile device management solutions make is possible to protect sensitive corporate data without restricting employees.
Corporate policy: When your team is dispersed, stronger remote security policies are critical. These additional measures need to think about cybersecurity from the standpoint of an attacker and provide teams with a clear guideline of security dos and don’ts. As part of this, additional training needs to be introduced for employees to increase awareness and outline how people should respond in the event of a cyber incident.
Additional security: Think storage in the cloud only, two factor-authentication, antivirus solutions and making use of a VPN to connect to the company’s network.
Support: Security teams are operating in an unprecedented environment. With all of these changes happening every day, it’s important to support your IT teams so that they can handle the additional pressure and best address the crises that constantly demand their attention.
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