7TH MAY 2021

Remote Working Still a Security Concern

A study on security practices associated with supporting remote workforces was recently published – the survey, which can be found here, polled around 300 IT professionals on their remote work security concerns.

Unsurprisingly, the responses showed a dramatic increase in the number of employees working from home, with 57% of organisations having more than three quarters working remotely.

Most organisations see some benefits of having a remote workforce, with 90% stating that they will continue to offer remote working in the future.

However, 79% of organisations are concerned about the security risks introduced by users working remotely. Of those security risks, 39% said their primary concern was exposure to malware and phishing attacks, 36% said that protection of data, especially from unmanaged endpoints.

The Challenge

The critical challenge for organisations will be how to mitigate these risks moving forward.

57% of responses said their most significant security challenge was user awareness and training. Something we here at Bluespires have been addressing even before the pandemic started. You can read more about the security awareness training we offer here.

52% of responses said home network security was another significant challenge, along with 46% who said data security, 45% increased security risks and 38% the use of personal devices.

Organisations had to react quickly in early 2020 to ensure their staff and employees could continue to work as effectively as possible when away from the office. As things start to get back to normal, now is an excellent time to review the solutions and procedures implemented to ensure they meet the organisation’s security requirements now and in the future.