5 Cybersecurity Weaknesses Working From Home

From Thursday 5 November, the UK entered a second national lockdown, meaning that those who have been working from home since the first lockdown at the end of March will continue to do so for some time. Thankfully, the majority of affected businesses will have already overcome the logistics of enabling remote working

But there is still a range of vulnerabilities inherent in a remote workforce pose both GDPR and cybersecurity risks. These should be addressed by life science businesses immediately before they could pose a major risk to a company’s IT infrastructure from cybercriminals and falling foul of GDPR.

Let’s have a look at five of the biggest weaknesses in cybersecurity that could lead to data breaches and cyberattacks on your business.

Lack of enhanced cybersecurity measures

The rush to migrate to remote working in March may have left vulnerabilities when accessing business email accounts and the like. By enabling multi-factor authentication, there will be an extra level of protection and security, which has been implemented by many businesses with remote workers.

Inadequate Cloud Security

Many businesses took advantage of cloud hosting services to allow remote workers to access the company information and files to require to work, but it should not be assumed that the data held in the cloud is secure.

Always pay attention to the service agreements from cloud service providers, especially the security measures and practices in place to better understand the risks involved in using such a service.

Data Storage

Aside from the cloud, there will inevitably be a significant amount of data, that would generally be held on company servers, that has made its way to employee’s personal computers and mobile devices.

Also, keep in mind that any physical confidential documents that employees may require would likely not be stored securely, and now be kept on kitchen tables and WFH setups. Remote workers will also not have access to secure disposal facilities as they would at the office for sensitive documents.

Access To Sensitive Data

Businesses should review the permissions granted to remote workers on servers and cloud services to ensure that they only have access to the information they need. For example, your marketing teams do not need access to sensitive HR files. Check and reassess the permissions granted to your staff.

Focusing Only On The Technical

While there may be many technical solutions already implemented to improve cybersecurity, the human factor should not be neglected.

A remote workforce provides an opportunity for cybercriminals to explore any potential vulnerabilities via phishing scams. To reduce the risks of a cyberattack or data breach, businesses need to ensure that all staff receive appropriate training on cybersecurity and best practice methods.

As remote working is set to be a major factor for businesses, even post-COVID, businesses need to take additional steps to mitigate the risks, ensure GDPR compliance and safeguard their organisations for the future.

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