Covid-19, home office and data security in the digital age

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In the digital age, security is vital. Especially in the context of mandatory remote work. What should be taken into account in this regard?
At the time of writing this article, the coronavirus pandemic has already caused more than 430,000 deaths worldwide. In a context in which Covid-19 refuses to retreat and is in fact still spreading across various latitudes of the world, companies are striving to adapt to the "new normal", changing the way they do business. In that sense, the adoption of remote work, once considered a benefit, is now the only way many organizations can keep the lights on.

In such a situation, organizations need to ensure that homeowner database work is productive, but with data security in mind . In addition, remote networks, varying technologies and profiles, and the need to control the extraction or storage of critical data need to be taken into account.

All of this makes it worth asking: What is the priority in terms of data security?






In an ICS survey, 23% said security incidents had increased since the transition to remote work, with some tracking as much as double the number of incidents.

Source: ICS



Productivity and security
A study found that 94% of cybersecurity professionals are more concerned about data security now than before the pandemic. Top areas of concern include:

Employees' home network (58%)
Increase in ransomware, phishing and social engineering attacks (45%)
Maintaining remote systems securely configured (41%)
Maintaining remote systems compatible (38%)
In the same survey, 63% said they had experienced Covid-19-related attacks.

The extremely challenging context requires organizations to achieve an adequate balance between flexibility and security. Therefore, reviewing their IT security policies and adapting them to the new scenario is key. But what should we review?

√ Where critical organizational data resides while employees work remotely.

√ How to establish data privacy policies.

√ Understand who is accessing the data.

√ Maintain data privacy at all times.

Initially, organizations had to focus on increasing connectivity due to the massive increase in virtual meetings, online training, live broadcasts, automated customer support, etc. But that should not mean neglecting risk management related to data privacy and security.