To many, the current situation presented by the war against Coronavirus has resulted in a lockdown or a community quarantine. This means that for one month, people are to strictly stay in their respective homes.
Digital Security Issues
While some companies have temporarily ceased operations, laid-off workers, and issued sick leaves, most have permitted their employees to work remotely. The suddenly-imposed regulation has raised another set of issues; online security while working remotely tops the list of concerns. On the bright side, internet services are up 24/7 and while there are threats to online security, there are solutions and measures to take as well.
Wi-Fi
Since working remotely is the preferred choice, access to the internet is essential. When handling company data, it makes perfect sense to stay away from the public or open-access Wi-Fi networks. Instead, a personal network or a personal hotspot would eliminate the possibility of being hacked by people lurking in a public network. For the tech-savvy, encrypting data is also an option.
Cloud
Access to files is another essential element when working from home. While taking home files via a thumb drive is a classic move, it is also a risky one. Once the files are saved on a physical drive, countless horrific possibilities would come to mind such as misplacing the drive, dropping it, or even getting the files corrupted. Thankfully, there are cloud services now that can host files 24/7 -- GoogleDrive and DropBox, to name a few.
VPN
Over the years, the use of a VPN (virtual private network) has made it possible for employees, bosses, and workaholics to take their work with them wherever they are. Their private network was made available outside the four walls of the office. Of course, security measures are essential to this kind of system.
While countless VPNs have floated the markets, Surfshark proved to be most effective.
Although relatively new in the market, Surfshark has a lot to boast about starting with covering an unlimited number of devices with online security. Since the coronavirus quarantine was suddenly imposed, working remotely would need some getting used to but there's no need to worry. Surfshark hosts a 24/7 support service that stay-at-home workers could turn to. Working remotely has its perks, too. Aside from working so comfortably in pajamas, no one is looking over your shoulder or breathing down your neck. We all know what that means: Netflix. Everyone can access Netflix, but VPN unlocks other countries libraries (US, Canada, French, etc). E.g. the trending movie Contagion (An 2011 Pandamenic virus case) is accessible only in few countries like Israel, Australia, Canada. The platform also has an ad blocker, a private search, and ID protection.
"14 Eyes" anxiety? Don't even worry about it. Surfshark is BVI-registered, which means that a strict no-logs policy is implemented. An audit done on Surfshark by Cure53 concludes a robust impression without any issues. This makes Surfshark perfect not only for office use but for small businesses as well.
With all these features that make a premium quality VPN, the expectation would be a price that bores a hole right through the budget -- or so we thought. Surfshark only costs $1.99 a month and with a 30-day money-back guarantee. That is 30 days to test out and use all the features risk-free and without limitation. Cool, right?
Updates
Lastly, there is no harm in activating the automatic updates feature on the devices that are to be used for remote work. App developers constantly improve their products and security is one of their main concerns. So, welcome the bug fixes! It can only do good.
These are just some ways to keep remote work secure. As the war against coronavirus rolls out its quarantine period, it is imperative for those who chose to continue working to keep these online security tips in mind.
