Whether you’re sick and can’t make it to work that day or there’s a pandemic affecting the world, working remotely has become vital for organizations. The importance of securing communications when it comes to remote work is clear, considering that malicious threat actors will take advantage of weak communications and lack of preparedness. Therefore, it is important for organizations and their employees to engage in effective workstation hardening. This process involves tools, techniques, and best practices to minimize exposure to threats and reduce vulnerability. The goal here is to reduce security risk by eliminating potential attack vectors.
Fortunately, remote workers can incorporate certain basic hardening tips in order to secure their communications. Here are a few relevant hardening tips that you can adopt:
- Remove all software that is not absolutely necessary to conduct your work. The more programs you have, the larger the attack surface is.
- Regularly patch software
- Use a non-privileged account with strong password and screensaver protected with password.
- Harden your network by properly configuring your firewall, secure remote access points and users, and encrypt network traffic. Also use VPN to connect to your corporate network and implement multi factor authentication.
- Set up your operating system to always show all file extensions. This can mitigate the risk of malicious .exe file impersonating .docx file.
- Eliminate unnecessary accounts and privileges.
- For mobile devices and laptops employ full disc encryption and backup the data regularly.
- Practice crypto communication and calls concerning private and confidential topics.
Adapting these basic hardening tips when working remotely can help to significantly improve security, which can translate into a lower risk of data breaches, malicious hacking, or malware. Wondering how to effectively perform workstation hardening? LIFARS’ CISO as a Service is designed to address organizations’ information security needs. Our CISOs are highly skilled at establishing, improving, and transforming Cybersecurity Programs focused on maximizing business values by minimizing risks and optimizing opportunities.
Credit:
https://www.beyondtrust.com/resources/glossary/systems-hardening