The rise of COVID-19 towards the beginning of 2020 changed everything we thought we knew about the world of work. In the last few months, there has been a massive shift from on-premise to remote working practices. Liberty Shield, a company specializing in UK-based VPN routers, conducted research into this new trend.
Liberty Shield’s experience in the VPN software and private proxy space means that it has an excellent insight into the way that businesses handle security, both inside of and out of the office. The new challenges that we’ve been facing in 2020 have forced many companies to shift to home working policies faster than expected. Liberty Shield believes that this speed may have come at the expense of some crucial security measures.
The Liberty Shield team are now urging entrepreneurs and businesses to consider the data security risks that they may be facing with home working.
Security Issues with Remote Work
One of the major problems linked to home working strategies during COVID-19 is that many employees have been forced rapidly into an environment that they weren’t prepared for. Team members haven’t received the necessary training to avoid any security issues. This means that many employees are using home WiFi networks to send and receive confidential messages from their company. This could lead to serious breaches, according to Liberty Shield.
The Cyber Rescue Alliance report from 2019 found that 90% of executives believe their company is missing at least one vital resource for protection against cyber threats. The risks associated with not being properly prepared are even greater during this pandemic environment.
Group Manager of Liberty Shield, Greg Murphy, said that since lockdown started, the company has seen a massive increase in the number of business owners facing data security concerns. Remote workers are accidentally exposing business data. A failure to use VPNs is leaving organisations open to attack.
Is Your Company Safe?
Even before the pandemic, figures showed that up to a third of businesses face a cyber issue each year. Liberty Shield recommends taking steps to ensure that adequate protections are in place as soon as possible. Advanced threat groups are now targeting individuals, as well as small and mid-sized businesses with scams and phishing emails related to COVID-19.
The VPN network available from Liberty Shield runs a 256-bit military grade encryption experience, complete with zero logging required. This ensures that companies can send, receive, and access data securely and safely. While VPN use is emerging as a must-have tool for keeping businesses safe in the pandemic, it’s also going to be essential in the path to the “new normal”.
Research firm Gartner also agrees that it’s important to have the right security in place as we move forward. The company recently suggested that around three quarters of organisations will continue to use remote working strategies after lockdown ends. Now is the time to ensure that your security systems are working as they should.
