In an area many business leaders overlook, securing data for Utah companies is growing in demand as hybrid working arrangements stay strong in 2022. 

With 65 percent of all small to medium businesses having reported a cyberattack and the average downtime due to a ransomware attack is 21 days, Comcast is helping businesses secure its cyber-borders as remote working conditions hit an all-time high.

Unfortunately, this major rise in the number of remote workers is creating more opportunities for cybercriminals. Increasingly, as more companies transition to cloud migration and hybrid workforces, critical data and applications are also moving out of the traditional data center to the edges. 

Remote workers have fewer security measures on their home networks than they would likely have in the office. That means that whenever an employee is authorized to work remotely from the main office, security perimeters change, and every access point and network element become a potential risk for security breaches. 

Simply put, with each remote worker, critical data is moving out of the traditional data center, which means those access points must be secured just as they are in the corporate office.

Additionally, the IT staff might be running skeleton crews without the same level of visibility into what employees are doing and threats to the network. This creates the perfect storm because more time spent online means everyone is more susceptible to phishing attempts and various cyberattacks.

However, when company security policies are established properly, it helps prevent or reduce the impact of a security breach and prevents it spreading through the system.

With employees, education is key to addressing the human element of cybersecurity. Raising user awareness of cyber dangers should be today’s priority for all businesses. But it shouldn’t happen just once. Cybersecurity training is most effective as an ongoing effort, ideally combining in-person sessions, online courses, and awareness campaigns with email reminders and posters. 

Start with these initial steps for training. 

1. Identify and avoid suspicious emails. This will help users avoid phishing attempts with URLs or attachments programmed to download malware into your network.
2. Set and enforce strong password policies. Teach employees to generate strong passwords or passphrases. Then enforce policies to change passwords frequently and prohibit all password sharing.
3. Set browsers to warn users when visiting a site that has been flagged as containing malware.
4. Block downloads from suspicious or unsanctioned sources.
5. Prohibit users from sharing company-owned laptops and mobile devices.
6. Teach users not to access sensitive company data through public WiFi networks.

End users are often the weak points that enable cybersecurity breaches, but educating your employees is only part of the battle. Understanding the threats and what cybercriminals are after is essential to building strong cybersecurity defenses. 

In addition, these essential components of a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy will further protect your system. For more information on protection from malware, ransomware, bots, or phishing attempts, contact Comcast for advanced security solutions to protect the Internet-connected devices that employees and visitors use every day. For a free copy of Comcast’s Small Business Guide to Cybersecurity, visit here.