As we maintain social distancing practices in our homes, health care facilities and retail establishments, it’s equally important to observe the same practices in our offices and other workspaces. Social distancing has led to an explosion in remote working in all industries. Many organizations are enforcing “work from home” policies and social interactions are rapidly becoming confined to video calls, social media posts and conferencing programs.
There is, however, an unseen threat rising in the digital space: the risk of cyber attacks that prey on our increased reliance on digital tools. A cyber attack could devastate our organizations or families by limiting access to their devices, data or the Internet. In a worst-case scenario, broad-based cyber attacks could cause widespread infrastructure failures that take entire communities or cities offline, obstructing health care providers, public systems and networks. Cyber criminals exploit human weaknesses to penetrate systemic defenses. They are extremely creative in devising new ways to exploit users and technology to access passwords and networks and data, often capitalizing on popular topics and trends to tempt users into unsafe online behavior.
Additionally, stress can incite our employees or constituents to take actions considered irrational under different circumstances. A recent global cyber attack targeted people looking for visuals of the spread of COVID-19. The malware was concealed in a map displaying coronavirus statistics loaded from a legitimate online source. Viewers were asked to download and run a malicious application that compromised the computer and allowed hackers to access stored passwords.
To protect systems and worker productivity, business owners and managers must implement strong cyber security measures.
Just as addressing the COVID-19 pandemic requires changing our social habits and routines to impede infection rates, business owners and managers must encourage their employees, staff and constituents to change online behavior and maintain high levels of cyber security.
Here are some practical actions to take to stay safe online:
- Check that you have a long, complex router password for your home wifi and that system firewalls are active on your router.
- Don’t reuse the same password across the web (a password manager is a great investment). Use a reliable VPN for Internet access wherever possible.
- Take extra caution when installing software and giving out any personal information on the web.
- Don’t click on links in email from an unknown source.
- When signing up to new services, verify the source of every URL and ensure the programs or apps you install are the original versions from a trusted source. Digital viruses spread much like physical ones; your potential mistakes online could very well contaminate others in your organization, an address book or the wider community.
- Just as you pay attention to trusted sources of data on the spread and impact of COVID-19, be sure to update your system software and applications regularly to patch any weaknesses that may be exploited.
- If at any stage you feel that the advice you’re being given sounds bizarre – whether the virus threat is offline or digital – search the Internet to see whether others have similar concerns and look for a well-known site that can help verify the legitimacy of the information.
Everyone’s personal behavior is instrumental in preventing the spread of dangerous infections, both online and in the physical world.
