With thanks to member Emergence Insurance, UAC recommends the following strategies to assist in maintaining cyber security while your staff are working from home.
The cyber risks of flexible work arrangements could include malware infection, unauthorised access, data security, and insecure devices used by staff.
It’s important that businesses and their staff ensure remote access to business networks is secure, so they aren’t vulnerable and business information isn’t exposed.
How do I stay safe?
Ensuring good cyber security measures is the best way to address the cyber threat.
Consider implementing these proactive strategies:
• Review your business continuity plans and procedures
• Ensure your systems, including virtual private networks and firewalls, are up to date with the most recent security patches
• Implement multi-factor authentication for remote access systems and resources (including cloud services)
• Ensure your staff and stakeholders are informed and educated in safe cyber security practices, such as identifying socially engineered emails and messages
• Ensure your data is backed up daily and automatically
• Increase your cyber security measures in anticipation of the higher demand on remote access technologies by your staff, and test them ahead of time
• If you use a remote desktop solution, ensure it is secure
• Ensure staff working from home have physical security measures in place. That minimises the risk of information being accessed, used, modified or removed from the premises without authorisation
• Ensure your work devices, such as laptops and mobile phones, are secure
• Ensure you are protected against Denial of Service threats.
Need more help?
The Australian Signals Directorate’s Australian Cyber Security Centre has produced some excellent advice to help businesses stay secure from cyber threats while managing remote workforces. Click here for more information.
