How the transition to Home Working due to COVID-19 has forced IT Providers to React

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Transition to Home Working

The COVID-19 crisis has forced IT providers to review how they offer their services to the end-users remotely since the transition to Home Working.

People have adjusted accordingly, setting up home offices to continue working. However, assembling unsecured devices comes with some level of vulnerability. It’s thus important to offer remote IT support.

As the pandemic rages on, cybercriminals have taken advantage of the situation to scam unsuspecting people. Therefore, businesses have put in place the following measures to protect their remote workers.

Transition to Home Working

Advising Users to Install Security Software

Buying new anti-virus tools for the various devices that remote workers are using comes in handy. Let the workers do real-time malware scanning on every device that they’re using. Set the security software such that it automatically updates at least once per day to help contain all the latest threats. BitDefender is one of the big players in this market, a trial can be downloaded here.

Ensure Users Update Their OS

All operating systems, including Windows, Linux, iOS, Android, and macOS, support automatic updates. IT providers should thus furnish remote workers with published and clear guidelines on how they can activate automatic updates on their respective OS.

Maintaining Responsive Tech Support

Most workers are not used to remote-based work, and thus need constant hand-holding. Accordingly, IT providers are ramping up helpdesks and support whereby system admins can offer assistance by responding to calls and emails.

With the need to care for children as schools are closed, employees may need to work out of hours. Therefore, IT providers should extend support coverage to early mornings and evenings.

It’s crucial to note that remote support is a potential attack vector as home users are at the risk of scams arising out of this opportunity. Even after a legitimate remote support session, employees might leave their workstations unprotected.

Multi-Factor Authentication

Put in place multi-factor authentication and password policies for users who may need to log into business services such as file sharing, collaboration, and payroll. It protects the system from hackers if the user credentials are stolen.

2fa

Secure Home Routers

Routers are very vulnerable, and some users may not even be aware if there’s an attack or not. They may not have the capacity to detect any compromises in the traffic. The technical team should thus advise their staff to update their default passwords and upgrade their equipment if they’re using old or low-quality routers.

Set up a Secure VPN

Facilitate users to acquire a trustworthy VPN solution, particularly those who require remote access to your network. This is particularly critical for businesses that rely on files and applications that are hosted on internal servers. A VPN protects unauthorized connections. Turn off split tunnelling so that there are no unencrypted connections as well.

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