Data on Transitioning to a New Office
Overview
It is very exciting moving into a new office because it often means that your business is expanding or moving up in class to attract high end clients. Whatever the reason it is absolutely critical to keep in mind the necessity of protecting your business data not just for your sake but also for the sake of your employees and clients who have placed their trust in you. So below are a few things to keep in mind:nn
Challenge
Military forces rank and compartmentalize information in levels ranging from all personnel access to top secret clearance requirements. This strategy is easily applicable to businesses as an effective way to ensure that each employee only has access to information they require to perform their duties without giving them access to critical business secrets. This is especially critical for businesses in the technology sector where corporate espionage is rife and there have been several cases of rival companies sending spies to gather information on competitors. Company data can be classified into three categories of public, private and sensitive with each category restricted to particular employees.
It may be difficult to believe but getting devices capable of hacking your bluetooth signal is as easy as logging on to Amazon and ordering it online for delivery to your home. Bluetooth is a notoriously insecure method of data transmission and is perhaps the easiest way for malicious individuals to get access to your employees laptops. Another potential vulnerability are listening devices also known as bugs that can listen in on your conversation and then transmit that information to dangerous parties. The best way to prevent this problem is to conduct a thorough sweep of your new offices using simple devices like signal finders that can detect any potentially malevolent devices.
Solution
The single greatest threat to the security of data in any business is the human factor of labor. Employees need to be educated on how to identify potential threats as well as the necessity of reporting mistakes they have made before they become security risks. The best examples of such scenarios include employees who lose their keycards or company issued phones but fail to file a report which in turn creates potential breach points. If an employee reports such incidences quickly then the office locks can be changed and a lost phoneu2019s access can be restricted. Employees are also the first and most important line of defence against potential insurgents who could be stealing company data. If an employee spots suspicious behavior then reporting it early could be vital in stopping data theft.
When moving into a new office, the first thing to do is replace any potential breach points with strong alternatives. A wooden door for example should be replaced with a titanium steel door requiring not just a key but some form of biometric identification such as fingerprints or eye scan. This is essential so that in case of a data breach it easy to know who has access to which rooms at specific times. Strong windows and a good alarm system could also come in handy in keeping a new office secure.
Results
A new office may have pre-installed network cables and phone lines but this could be a security risk if you are unsure of the honesty of the people who installed them. An evil person could easily tap the phone lines hoping to get critical information like bank details or intercept data flowing through your network cables. It is far wiser to do your own installations and ensure that all data flowing through the organization has end to end encryption so that even if it is intercepted it cannot be used against you.nn
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