5 Things IT Teams Can Learn From Initial Weeks of Telecommuting

In the wake of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, we have witnessed a surge in telecommuting as more companies transition to remote work. Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve seen a spike in web traffic (including a record-setting number of Zoom calls) as companies make the switch. Initially, there was even concern that this massive onslaught in web traffic might even break the internet, but, for now, it looks as though we’ve avoided this particular calamity. Nonetheless, the Great Telecommute Experiment of 2020 is well-underway.

The challenges involved in this overhaul are daunting for many companies and IT teams to say the least. Fortunately, this process doesn’t have to be all trial and tribulation by any means, even if organizations are a bit late to the game with their preparation. To assist, we’ve curated a series of tips from tech pros across the industry to help iron out some of the wrinkles as teams around the country make this clunky transition en masse.

Have policies in place for failure and business continuity

On the security side, this chaotic transition is certainly ripe for failure and breaches. With more teams working remotely, there are sure to be enhanced endpoint vulnerabilities. Additionally, more companies will increase the number of third-parties with network access during this transition.

“Organizations need to understand that more sensitive data will be stored and available via a remote workforce. You don’t want intentional or unintentional data leakage, which might require new controls on remote endpoints and cloud applications,” explained CRITICALSTART founder and CEO, Rob Davis.

As a result, more companies are looking to VPNs to beef up network security. One such provider recently reported worldwide use of its VPN technology had recently increased more than 160%. Although, as CRITICALSTART noted in our correspondence, there are other basic measures companies can adopt such as establishing multi-factor authentication and single sign-on protection. Regardless, even with the most comprehensive security measures in place, companies should also have a response strategy in the event of a breach.

“Plan for failure. Most breaches are caused by human error, and the best-intentioned people still make mistakes. Have an incident response plan that is updated to work in this new environment,” Davis said.

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Featured in TechRepublic | April 7, 2020