Cybersecurity commandments for companies and workers

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COVID- has transformed the way we work. A company's data is a valuable asset, and working from home with your own computer opens up a huge attack surface that puts its integrity at risk, as well as the entire security of the company. % of the attacks reported by the National Cybersecurity Institute (INCIBE) were directed at SMEs. More than half of the affected companies have suffered an attack in the last months. The average cost to repair one of these cyberattacks is estimated to be €, In most cases it means the closure of the business. These companies, in general, do not have sophisticated cyber protection systems. But it is human failure, and not technological security holes, that is the most common cause of cyberattacks. Therefore, prevention is mainly about personal safety habits. We present here a series of recommendations to be able to telework from home safely.


Protect your home Wi-Fi with a password Forget about passing your Wi-Fi password to your neighbor and avoid connecting to other people's networks as much as possible. Although this allows you to do without cables and work anywhere in the house, it is much safer to connect the computer to the router using a network cable. Plus, wired connection is much faster than Wi-Fi. Visit only seemingly AOL Email List safe sites You should make sure that a padlock appears in the address bar and that the web address begins with https . The https protocol is not perfectly secure, but it is much better than simple http. Web browser with the address of the Universidad Oberta de Catalunya, where you can see the padlock and https. Use a Virtual Private Network (VPN) A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is software that acts as a tunnel between the computer and the destination VPN server. The data travels encrypted. Ideally, the SME would have its own VPN server to which workers connect from home.



If this possibility does not exist, a paid VPN (never free) that connects your computer to a VPN server, and from there to the company, would add an extra layer of security. This is especially important if you access the Internet from a network you don't control (for example, from a hotel or airport). Another advantage of a VPN is that it hides your IP address and relocates you geographically. A Virtual Private Network (VPN) allows the user to browse in an encrypted and secure way. Author provided Update software (especially antivirus) It is essential to have the programs you use updated, since updates are often security-related. Failure to update software contributes to % of cyberattacks and data theft All software is susceptible to security holes. For example, in the WannaCry ransomware attack exploited a Windows vulnerability to infect more than , computers in countries. The British health system had to cancel , consultations and spend £ million repairing the damage. Although modern antiviruses identify viruses and other types of malware , some of them are not easily detected.