Do your employees use their personal devices for work related items? For example, does everyone on your team have their work email on their personal cellphone? Typically, data stored on personal devices aren’t treated with the same level of care as data stored on work laptops. Hackers are aware of this and will do anything to infiltrate the data stored on a personal device. As a business owner it is your job to ensure that your company’s data is secure – both within and outside your network.
Ensuring Your Employees Personal Devices are Safe
1) Update Apps
Most of the time, app updates include security patch features that fix known hacker access points. It’s easy for people to forget to update their phones, especially when they can have hundreds of apps. Fortunately, it is pretty easy to do on both Apple and Android phones. They key here is keeping consistent.
2) Install Multi-Factor Identification on All Devices
While this adds an additional step for your employees to be able to access work related items on their personal devices, it can save your company from an attack. Multi-factor identification requires the participant to enter a special code when someone is trying to access their data. If an employee receives a code but wasn’t the one that initiated the request, they know that someone is trying to access their information and they can block the request.
3) Ensure that your Employees are Locking Their Devices
Whether it’s with a unique 4-6 digit code, fingerprint or face ID – employees need to be responsible for keeping their devices locked (this usually happens automatically) when their personal devices aren’t in use. Having this feature enabled ensures that only your employee can access their personal data.
At the end of the day, it is harder for a business owner to manage the security on their employees personal devices. Technologies Northwest can work with your business to setup a plan to ensure that personal devices are just as protected as work devices.
Connect with us to learn more.