As the world transitions from working in offices and commercial spaces to working from home, online hackers have been putting in overtime to try and successfully attack major organizations. Data from SentinelOne shows that in the last month alone there is an upward trend of attempted attacks with 145 threats per 1000 endpoints. At the start of 2020, there were only 30 or 37 threats per 1000 endpoints which shows just how persistent hackers are currently possible. Hackers are presenting themselves as government organizations and health organizations such as WHO and the IRS, and they are taking advantage of all the good work these organizations are doing at this time. In this article, I will go over several precautions everyone should take while working from home to protect yourself and your organization from a cyber-attack.
Use Multi-Factor Authentication as Much as Possible
Having multi-factor authentication can make it extremely difficult for hackers to access your information and adding as many layers of security is key to protecting yourself from cyberattacks. Having multi-factor authentication can not only prevent hacks once an account has been compromised, but it can also prevent hackers from trying to access private accounts from anywhere in the world. Combining multi-factor authentication with a password manager can avoid risky behavior such as using the same password on multiple sites and is very cost-effective for major organizations.
Stay Private
Using a VPN or Virtual Private Network can greatly reduce the chances of a cyberattack, and using a VPN makes it safe for corporate employees to access IT resources within the network. A VPN creates an encrypted network that can be connected to almost any IoT device such as a PC, laptop, or mobile device. Using a VPN while dealing with a private company or client information is very, very important in order to make sure you are adhering to your organization's privacy policy and to make sure you are doing everything you can to protect your client's private information.
Only use Company Approved Devices
Being sure to only use company-approved devices while working from home is essential to maintaining good cybersecurity hygiene and protecting private client information. Major organizations install a range of cybersecurity software and equipment on company-approved devices to defend the organization while you perform your job. It is very important that you do not access private client or company data or information on personal computers or personal cell phones because the risk of a cyber attack goes up exponentially. If you must use a private computer or cell phone because of equipment problems be sure to follow your organization's BYOD or Bring Your Own Device policy to ensure everything is well connected and secured.
Sources: - https://www.raconteur.net/technology/covid-19-cybersecurity
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