You’re a hardworking team player who likes to check e-mail and get a few things done after hours – all good! But here’s something you might not know: you should never access company data, file servers, or applications through personal devices and home PCs that are not properly monitored by your Managed Services provider. Why?
If you and your family members are using a home PC to play games, access LinkedIn, Snapchat, and Facebook, and shop online, ask yourself: are you diligently updating and monitoring the antivirus software, firewall, and security patches on the machine? If the answer is no, or even if you are not sure, then there’s a high probability your devices are infected with spyware or malware, perhaps even unbeknownst to you. Since most malware is designed to operate in total stealth mode undetected, you won’t know that some hacker is recording your keystrokes as you log in to your company’s file server or cloud application containing private, critical, sensitive data.
The same goes for your employees or your colleagues. If you haven’t done so yet, please communicate to them the importance of cybersecurity. If you have already discussed it, discuss it again, and discuss it regularly.
According to Kaspersky Lab, mobile development is one the fastest-developing areas demanding IT security attention against threats. Security issues with mobile devices have reached new heights. Back in 2013 malware “came of age” and keeps evolving, posing new, more mature threats to the cyberworld.
“It’s no great surprise that mobile malware is approaching the PC threat landscape in terms of cybercriminal business models and technical methods; however the speed of this development is remarkable.” – 2015 Security Bulletin, Kaspersky Lab.
Only 2% of Americans do NOT own a portable device
That means that 98% of us do – and not all for games and fun. Consider this scary statistic: according to Fiberlink, a phone services firm acquired by IBM in 2013, more than half – 51% of employed U.S. adults – use personal mobile devices for work-related purposes and a 1/3 of those who responded said that they have lost a USB drive with confidential information on it. That can be interpreted as 17% of respondents experiencing business data loss. Think of it this way: if your small business has at least 6 employees, it means at least one of them may lose some of your company data at some point during the employment – if they haven’t already done so.
Practical Tips for Mobile Device Safety
Use company-approved devices – and ONLY those devices – that are properly protected and monitored to access company data; and if you just can’t help but take work home, let your IT department know so they can set you up with a SECURE way to work remotely – that is what we do for our clients.
- Encrypt all of your personal and business data BEFORE you store it on a portable device such as a USB or flashcard so information can’t be accessed if you lose the device.
- Use professional, top-grade anti-virus and security software, and keep it up to date. An infection rate of 66% means there are a lot of malware-spreaders out there.
- Remember that USBs pose a special threat because their risk isn’t just in the potentially malicious files that may be stored on them, but also with malware that is built into the firmware, the core of how they work.
You should also talk to your employees and colleagues about the safety and security of your business data. Let’s consider portable devices, such as USB thumb drives, smartphones, and tablets: they are a convenience, and a lot of people use it to share information. A while ago Symantec conducted a survey, discovering that 62% of respondents believed transferring work documents to personal computers, tablets or smartphones was an acceptable practice. The majority of these files are never deleted because employees underestimate the risks involved with keeping the data.
Does your company rely on mobile devices?
Do you need reliable, expert Security, Data Backup, and Disaster Recovery Services?
Call us at (855) 551-7760 or Request a Consultation today. Let’s start a dialogue to make sure your business continuity is assured and your company data is safe and secure.
Intelligent Business Continuity services from powersolution.com, a New Jersey local IT consulting and Computer Service company include remote tech support and on-site computer service visits, monitoring, and other aspects of Managed Services. We also offer Data Backup and Disaster Recovery services to businesses in New Jersey and local areas.
Do you need tech support in NJ? Give us a call at (855) 551-7760 and find out how we can reduce the total costs of asset ownership, and eliminate your IT problems and the resulting downtime.
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