June 10, 2020
Things have been pretty crazy these last few months. By no means are we back to normalcy or out of the woods, but there are signs of progress.
Regardless of where the next few months or years takes us, there is a clear indication that the landscape of many working environments could be permanently altered. And from a cybersecurity perspective, that is a lucky break for cybercriminals who have been having a field day as a result of these changes.
As many organizations clamored to get employees prepared to work from home, their attack surfaces doubled, and many security concerns fell to the wayside to get things setup so quickly, a perfect storm for cybercrime. The reality is the security protections that are available in our corporate offices are much more than we have at home. Also, the disconnect from coworkers makes it more difficult to communicate about potential dangers like phone scams and phishing.
The best thing we can do to weather this storm is to keep cybersecurity a top priority whether you are working at home or in the office. Here are some tips to bolster your defense:
If you are continuing to work from home,treat every suspicious email and phone call with caution. Being out of the office could result in more phishing emails getting through or could mean answering some of those random phone calls coming through on your cell phone. Be cognizant of common scams such as Tech Support scams and Business Email Compromise (BEC) scams.
Make sure you are connecting to your corporate environment securely and only using your work computer for work. If you do find yourself going back into the office, make sure you refresh yourself on company policies and procedures. Continue being on the lookout for common scams just as you would at home.
Be a cybersecurity spokesperson by spotting threats and alerting your coworkers as soon as possible. Regardless of if you are sitting on your couch or in a cubicle, make sure to continue using all the cybersecurity best practices you’ve learned. And if you do think you have made a mistake or clicked on something you shouldn’t have, contact your supervisor and IT as soon as possible.
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