Working from home is new to many, and it can be overwhelming! Godlan employees have been successfully working remotely for years. We wanted to share our best strategies for working securely. There is an added benefit of learning to implement these steps for work, as they will also help you maintain a cybersecure home.

Step One – You

You are always your best defense. Technology cannot protect you completely. Cyberattacks and hackers target YOU, not your computer or your smart phone or your tablet. These cybercriminals attempt to trick you into giving them the information they want, such as your passwords, your work data, or even virtual control of your computer by creating a sense of urgency.  Examples of this type of pressure attack include: a phone call from someone claiming to be your software service provider, or technical support claiming that your login is about to expire, or that your computer is infected; or perhaps you even receive an email with a warning that your passwords have been changed, or that a package couldn’t be delivered and they prompt you to click a link which is malicious. If you find yourself in any of these situations, STOP! Do not click links or give information out via email, text or over the phone. Call your supervisor or IT department to verify what you are being told. The best defense against cyberattacks and hacking is YOU.

·      Do not click on links you aren’t CERTAIN are valid.

·      Do not bypass security policies or procedures, even if you are urged to do so. Many hackers or cyberattack attempts will use fear, intimidation, urgency, or even a crisis of missing an important deadline to trick you into clicking links or giving out important information. Stop, don’t click and don’t give out information.  Call your supervisor or IT department to verify.

·      If a message, email or text from a friend or co-worker seems to have a different tone or wording than you are familiar with, pick up the phone and CALL them to verify that they have sent the message.  Generally, if it strikes you as strange, it is not a legitimate message.

Step Two – Your Home Network

Your home network begins with Wi-Fi. This is what enables all of your devices to connect to the internet. Your wireless network is controlled by your router, or perhaps even by a wireless access point. Both of these devices work by broadcasting wireless signals to which all of your devices connect. Securing your wireless network is crucial to protect your home. There are three main steps to securing your home network:

·      Change the default password for the administration of your wireless network.

·      Allow only people that you know and trust to join your network. Require a password in order for anyone to connect to your network.

·      Make passwords strong. Make sure your administrator password is different from the password you use to allow people to connect to your network.

If you aren’t sure how to change your admin password or how to require a password to join your network, call your internet service provider for help, or if you have a wireless access point device, check the instructions that came with the device, visit the manufacturer’s website, or call their helpline.

Step Three – Passwords

It is imperative to have strong, unique passwords for each site and account. The more characters a password has, the stronger it is. Using a combination of words together is one easy way to create a strong password. For instance, you might use something like “madhatterteaparty”. If the site requires a mix of characters, symbols and at least one capital letter, try something like this: “$MadHatterTeaParty$” (Note, we recommend that you NOT use madhatterteaparty or $MadHatterTeaParty$.)

In addition to creating a strong password, make sure to enable two-step verification whenever possible. This process utilizes your password, but then also adds a second step whereby a code is sent to your smartphone or even an app that generates a code for you. Two-step verification is one of the most important steps you can take to protect all of your accounts and is actually quite easy to implement.

If you can’t remember all of your passwords, use a password manager! A password manager is a specialized program or app that stores all of your passwords in an encrypted format.

Step Four – Software Updates

Hackers and cyberattackers are searching for vulnerabilities in the software your devices use. If a vulnerability is found, these cybercriminals use programs specifically designed to exploit and hack into any device you may be using. The companies that create the software are constantly working hard to fix these vulnerabilities by releasing updates. It is very important to update your devices and software when new updates are released.  This is a crucial step in stopping hackers in their tracks. Enable automatic updates. Make sure that you stay on top of updates for all of your software and devices.  Don’t forget baby monitors, security cameras, gaming consoles and even your car can have software security updates.

Step Five – Children and Guests

Make sure that your work devices are protected and not accessible to children or even guests in your home. Information can be modified or accidentally erased, or worse yet, they can accidentally infect the device by visiting questionable links. Keep your work device safe and protected by not allowing others to use it.

As an Infor Gold Channel Partner representing CloudSuite Industrial (SyteLine) ERP, Godlan has you covered, and offers a wide range of services including, managed hosting, managed IT services, managed security services, and disaster recovery as a service (DRaaS). Please call 586-464-4400 or visit www.godlan.com for more information.

Download the free PDF Working from Home? Top 5 Steps for Security Here