5 Tips to Make Sure that Your Telecommuting Employees are Keeping Your Files Safe

When you work with telecommuters, security can be an important issue. Because they aren’t on site, where you can check just what measures your employees are taking to keep files safe, it’s important to make sure that there are policies and tools in place to make sure that your material isn’t going to find its way into the wrong hands.

1. Discuss password security with your team members. Passwords are the first line of protection for most computer systems, from online file storage to even accessing a laptop. But many people use weak passwords, store their passwords somewhere very accessible or even turn off password protection on their hardware. Make sure that your telecommuters understand how to pick good passwords.
2. Limit downloads to your company’s computers. By using cloud-based tools as much as possible, you’re reducing the chance that one of your team members is going to download a corrupted file or a virus. There will always be files your team needs to download, but if you limit the places that they find their downloads, you can limit problems.
3. Consider who has access to your equipment and files. It’s not uncommon for a telecommuter to let someone else use his or her laptop. Family members or friends may hop on just for a moment to check email or may spend a little more time using the machine, making it harder to control how a laptop is used and who can log into your systems (especially if a telecommuter saves passwords in his or her browser). It’s important that impress on your telecommuters that they need to limit who has physical access to their computers when they aren’t in the office, just as a matter of course.
4. Check for industry-specific concerns. Every industry has its quirks, even when it comes to computer security. You may want to consult with an expert on any particular issue important to your industry (like preserving records for review or limiting access to sensitive information). You may have legal obligations to control access to your computer files beyond taking steps to protect your own business, especially if you have access to clients’ financial information.
5. Write your security policies and keep them updated. Telling your team members about a policy once just doesn’t have the same impact as sending them a document that lays out the policies and that they can refer back to. Furthermore, you need to review and update your policies regularly. There are always new threats to computer security and you need to respond to them.

Not every business needs extreme computer security measures, but every organization should take at least basic steps to protect data. You can avoid issues with customer privacy, competitors getting access to your information and other problems, just by implementing simple security policies like these. It’s also crucial that you stay up-to-date on what your options are, as well as the more common attacks that hackers, identity thieves and other people who will want to misuse your data are using. It’s a constantly changing world and the only way to protect yourself and your business is to get as much information as you can.

Image by Flickr user Kathleen Conklin