Checklist for staying secure while working from home

By Jason McNicholas

Cyber Security Technologist

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, people around the world have been working from home in order to prevent the virus spreading. Naturally, a sudden change to home working for millions of employees used to an office environment, causes significant security concerns

We have prepared an easy guide for home workers to ensure their networks and work is protected.

Video conferencing software such as Zoom and Skype has increased exponentially, making them a huge target for hackers. Users should use a strong password for their accounts as most hacking efforts are focused on compromising such platforms.

Users should also be aware of the administrator interface of their home routers, sometimes (especially on older models) the administrator password is standard/easily guessable such as “admin” or “root”. This should be changed along with ensuring that the internet login function is disabled.

It is also good practice to send out regular reminders to users to be vigilant for potential phishing emails as there has recently been a surge of these, especially around the COVID-19 pandemic. We have another blog about these new phishing scams that can be found here: https://www.indelibledata.co.uk/scamming/defenses-down-while-working-from-home/

If users are using their own devices for work rather than company-issued ones, there should at least be antivirus installed as this will protect against potential malware on these devices.

Indelible Data recommends that home users should have some form of ‘self certification’ checklist to complete – especially for those using their own devices. The Cyber Essentials scheme is a really good place to start – even if your company does not wish to achieve official certification. The questionnaire can be found here: https://www.indelibledata.co.uk/free-cyber-essentials-questionaire-download/