AVG SMB Security Boot Camp: Part Six- The Mobile Workforce
The opportunity to work on the move has been firmly grasped by small businesses all over the globe. Neat, fast and clever consumer technologies and gadgets have been easily adapted to meet the needs of the small business.
For the employer, it appears to be a no brainer. Employees being able to work productively whenever and wherever through an Internet connection is appealing in itself; and then there is the saving in expensive office space or facilities.
However, whereas workers may be up to 50% more productive and businesses may save on fixed costs, there are some pitfalls to beware of.
A simple fact: Mobile connections will never be as safe as on-premise “hard wired” connections.
So mobile connectivity to the company network brings with it implicit risks as data is transferred. This means educating your mobile workers on staying safe and protecting your data.
Next steps
Write a policy document that outlines some do’s and don’ts for mobile workers. Here are some tips:
- Don’t connect to a free Wi-Fi connection in a public place unless it is advertised by the café owner and is secured with a password key.
- Do not engage in any ecommerce or commercially sensitive operations from public Internet connections; wait until you are in a secure environment.
- If you supply your staff with a smartphone then explain the risks of downloading apps from the Android Market, some of these contain malicious code that could steal your data.
- Be wary of location-based mobile apps that require additional user information to be shared. Location tracking and your privacy could be compromised.
- Close your Bluetooth connection when in public places.
- Ensure you have the latest mobile security in place to help protect against fraud and viruses.
