The company writes:
Below is a glimpse of some concerns that we have experienced and we thought it would be valuable to share them.
What we are hearing right now:
Long-term strategies to keep up with this unpredictable situation.
Most network were built to allow home working for some staff. Mainly the management teams … now everyone needs it.
When working remotely, it needs to be fast enough and super reliable … allowing everyone to stay connected all day.
Everyone is starting to realise that their organisations still needs to move forward. We can’t just wait this out. So the IT needs to work … and be maintained as usual
The IT must no longer tie the organisation to a specific office. You need to be able to work from anywhere
Security is a major problem for SME’s and schools whom are being hit hard by hackers and malware such as ransomware.
Many IT Support companies are struggling to cope with the demand and keep themselves working too.
The systems that are being reviewed right now:
Cloud services and how to make data accessible from anywhere (Using Office 365, SharePoint, Email online, Azure Active Directory).
Internet Connectivity (It needs to be cope with remote working and using cloud services)
Cloud Telephony(It shouldn’t matter if you’re working from the office or home. The phones should work from anywhere as one system. The customer shouldn’t see a difference if you are working from home or the office. And it needs to be super cost effective).
Remote access via VPN or a remote desktop server.
Security basic should be in place.
What’s the deal with Security right now?
Basically, most organised crime happens over the web. Phishing emails to capture your credentials, a fake holiday booking page, ransomware etc.
The lockdown presented a situation where most people were working remotely and the systems weren’t always planned to operate that way. This means that organisations opened their remote access (an external gateway into your previously secure network) for staff but there may be configuration problems or they might not have all the things in place you need to be safe. Additionally, your IT may not be as maintained as normal…because you’re not in the office and your support person or company is most likely coping with remote working issues. This means that your firewall your anti-virus updates, windows patches, backups and so forth might not be in the best place. It’s worth mentioning that we see the vast majority of breaches originate from web and email.
We believe in getting the basics right. (We have a security specialist skillset and help organisations implement and maintain ISO27001 etc).
You should really have the following in place:
A brand name firewall with an active subscription for updates.
Remote access should be via a VPN client or a secure remote desktop server.
Remote access should not be access using a username and password. You should have two factor or multi-factor authentication to secure your password.
Your email should be scanned by a email security app. Cloud based apps work best with Office 365.
Your web traffic should be scanned by a web filter. Not to check your Facebook usage, but to ensure the links you click on are safe and pages don’t contain malware.
Laptops and mobile devices should be encrypted and ideally have an MDM installed. (Did you know that Office 365 has MDM functionality??)
Windows updates must be done!
Every device must have a valid anti-virus tool with active updates.
A good backup system should be in place. Backups should be taken of data, servers and there should be an offsite copy.
Hoping this helps!
If you need help with any of the above, we are just on the other side of this email. Alternatively, call 012 23 20 99 20 and ask for Louise.