COVID-19 and social distancing have quickly forced a change in how we conduct businesses. With many organizations shifting some – or all – of their business to a remote workforce, people are facing unprecedented challenges. Business IT departments realize this is their moment to shine by putting together a continuity strategy that will keep fundamental business objectives functioning. In order to do so, organizations need to rethink how they’ll conduct business outside of four-walls. Here are four areas of IT that you’ll need to consider:
Remote Access – Remote access is how your team accesses company information, documents, applications and more when they’re not connected to the company Wi-Fi network. You want to make sure your employees have seamless access to the information they need, but more importantly, that information needs to be secure, too. Those who fail to secure remote access leave their systems vulnerable for cybercriminals to get their hands on customer information, which they can hold for ransom. The best way to protect your data is with a secure virtual private network.
Endpoint Security – Endpoints are your laptops, tablets, mobile phones and wireless devices that connect to your networks. With endpoint security software, you’ll gain a better view of all user-devices to monitor and block risky activities and security threats. Endpoint security also includes making sure your firewalls, antivirus and other applications are up to date.
Day-to-Day Operations – The best way to keep business running as usual when you’re working from a remote environment is to make sure your employees can do exactly what they do in the office, at home. Have a few employees take their laptops home to make sure they have access to the VPN, business documents, email and more. Ask them what worked and what didn’t – you’ll want to make sure you get everything sorted out before a potential disaster or crisis occurs.
Awareness Training – Cybercriminals like to take advantage of weaknesses. As more and more businesses transition to remote workforces, not all of them are taking the security precautions they should be, and cybercriminals are at the ready to steal information. There’s no better time than now to revisit security awareness training with your team. Let them know what’s appropriate and teach them about how to spot suspicious emails and warn them about malicious email links.
A business continuity plan covers all these security tactics and more to ensure your business can get back up and running as quickly – and securely – as possible. We know these past months have been difficult. We don’t want you to have to face these challenges on your own. Our expert team knows all the ins-and-outs of business continuity and we want to help. Contact us today to learn more.
