Two Thirds Of Organizations Suffer Breaches Due To WFH

Uploaded on 2023-06-13 in TECHNOLOGY--Resilience, FREE TO VIEW

The remote workplace is now popular across the world thanks to the rapid response to the covid pandemic. While many companies will have now been operating a remote or hybrid structure, a recent survey by security company Fortinet reveals that the remote workplace poses a significant security threat.

The 2022 annual report from the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) shows that data breaches cost the US over $450m, a growth of 148% since 2020.

This demonstrates that, though employers are continuing to offer more flexible working options for their employees, they aren’t committing to keeping their networks secure.

Remote or hybrid workplaces offer unique challenges to data security and some companies may still be encountering new issues even two years into the process. However, the cost of insecure networks and lax document security is too high to not take every step possible to prevent breaches.

WFH Security Issues & The Procedure To Manage Them

Working from home of course means using your home WiFi network, which is undoubtedly more vulnerable than networks set up for business use. The security of an employee’s home network is also difficult and sometimes expensive to assess, meaning many companies will not be able to afford to do it or don’t have the infrastructure in place to do so.

There is technology available to assess personal WiFi systems but this is most likely unaffordable for most small businesses. Therefore, other steps need to be taken to ensure your staff know how to set up their own security. This could include guides on reviewing firewalls, the option to add antivirus software and providing IP addresses to your security team.

Additionally, some small businesses that began remote working in 2020 and have continued the policy may not have been able to offer devices to everyone working from home and are now experiencing issues with security because of this. Even with devices provided by the company, asset management poses a threat to security, particularly when employees leave the business or travel frequently.

Similar to the previous point, you may need to offer your staff security options to keep devices safe. It’s also important to ensure all staff have a strong awareness of their role in maintaining security in their work through regular training. Human error is always the most significant vulnerability and network issues only compound this challenge.

Not only do virtual documents pose challenges, but there are also security issues whenever employees need to use physical documents when working from home. As different kinds of data need to be disposed of in different ways to ensure security compliance, this is not always possible in a home office environment.

For any employees handling physical documents, training must be provided and regularly refreshed on how and when to properly dispose of data. You may also need to purchase equipment like a compliant shredder for your employees’ home offices. This will be necessary if your team works remotely often but may not always be affordable.

Ultimately, if these challenges are too expensive or difficult to manage, you may need to reassess your working-from-home policy. This could mean that some employees need to be in the office more than others or that remote working isn’t a possibility for your staff. Though many companies are working on a hybrid model, the level of insecurity this causes could be too much to risk for your company.

How The Remote Workplace Has Made Data Security Even More Essential

The Fortinet survey also found that most organizations haven’t mitigated the risks related to home working in the two years since the practice has become more commonplace. Since the data shows that the cost of data breaches has more than doubled in this same period, this highlights how essential security measures are.

Whether it’s virtual or physical data, every business needs to ensure they have thorough policies, the right technology and a competent awareness from all staff on how they can protect the boundaries of your organization from breaches.

Kyle Mitchell is Commercial Sales Director at Whitaker Brothers

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