Published on: Jun 10, 2020
How Secure is Your Remote Work Environment?
Faced with a pandemic, millions of people all over the world were suddenly forced to work from home. While people adapt to unique circumstances, there are significant technological hurdles for businesses, with entire teams transitioning to remote work. Mitigating risks and complying with security controls is challenging for any business but particularly for those teams that work with sensitive data outside the office.
In this article, we look at the potential risks to businesses from remote work, how ISO standards can improve information security for remote workers, and how GRC tools can help smoothen the process.
Risks of Working From Home for Businesses
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, working from home was becoming increasingly popular, not to mention a great way to save costs for businesses. Remote work, however, poses additional information security risks for businesses.
Any activity that transfers information outside of a business' control presents significant risk to information security that must be addressed with the right controls. There are several types of remote working risks:
Employees not being able to access resources required to do their jobs, including hardware, software, and access to business systems
Exposing the business' network to security breaches from an employee's computer or network (and vice versa)
Potential loss or transmission of data to unauthorized parties
Lost productivity due to lack of oversight or distraction
Employee's becoming isolated from colleagues and the broader organization
Damage to company culture or team morale from the lack of face-to-face contact
Additional Security Risks in Remote Work
One of the biggest security risks associated with remote work is the potential for data breaches and unauthorized access to sensitive information. This can occur due to several factors, including:
Insecure internet connections (such as using public Wi-Fi without a VPN)
Lack of encryption on devices or during data transmission
Employees using personal devices that may not have up-to-date security controls
Phishing attacks targeting remote workers through email or collaboration platforms
When employees access business information from outside the secure confines of the office, these vulnerabilities can be exploited more easily by attackers. Data can be intercepted in transit, devices can be lost or stolen, and unauthorized users (even within the home, like family members) may inadvertently access sensitive data. The increased attack surface and reduced oversight make it critical for organizations to address these risks proactively.
To address these risks, it is important that businesses develop policies and security measures to ensure employees complete their duties while maintaining a secure environment.
How to Secure Information While Working Remotely
There are several steps for businesses to address information security for remote work: conducting risk assessments, applying the principle of least privilege, creating work from home policies, and applying ISO controls for teleworking and mobile devices.
Risk Assessments
Risk assessments are used to assess, identify, and modify security. This process allows managers to be proactive by prioritize threats and assign resources to implement appropriate security solutions. Specifically, a teleworking risk assessment should consider:
Access in the home (e.g. family, friends) to devices that are used to access business systems
Printed material in the home that could be lost or stolen
Devices used for teleworking could be lost or stolen and used to access business systems
Information can be intercepted when transmitted from devices to business systems and vice versa
Devices, particularly if outdated, can be compromised and used to invade business systems
These risks can be magnified when mobile devices are used. As such, it is important for businesses to establish clear policies for safeguarding mobile devices and the information which they can access.
Establishing Clear BYOD Policies
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policies are essential when employees use personal devices for work purposes. Organizations should set clear guidelines to regulate the use of personal phones, laptops, and tablets, ensuring these devices meet specific security requirements—such as up-to-date antivirus software, strong device passwords, and regular security updates. A well-defined BYOD policy helps mitigate the risks associated with personal device usage, such as data leakage, unauthorized access, or the introduction of malware into company systems.
By combining strong risk assessments with robust BYOD and mobile device policies, organizations can take meaningful steps to secure sensitive business information, even outside the traditional office environment.
The Importance of Security Audits for Remote Work
Regular security audits play a crucial role in safeguarding information when employees are working remotely. These audits involve systematically reviewing your organization’s systems, access controls, and security protocols to uncover any weaknesses before they can be exploited.
By performing these assessments, businesses can:
Identify outdated software or unsecured devices being used from home offices
Detect lapses in compliance with policies, including improper device use or weak authentication practices
Evaluate whether controls like the principle of least privilege are properly enforced for remote users
Ensure critical business information is adequately protected during transmission and storage outside the office
Security audits aren’t just for compliance, they help you catch evolving risks associated with shifting work environments and mobile device usage. Solutions from leading firms like Deloitte and PWC, for example, often highlight the value of audit cycles in keeping up with new threats.
Ultimately, building in regular security reviews can mean the difference between a contained incident and a widespread breach—all while giving managers insight into how well your current controls are working in practice.
Principle of Least Privilege
The 'principle of least privilege' is a security concept where users are given the minimum level of access or permissions to perform their job functions. This reduces the risk of unauthorized access to systems or sensitive data if a device is lost or stolen or information is intercepted. 'Principle of least privilege' works to contain compromises to their area of origin and prevents them spreading to other parts of the system. This principle should be applied to devices, software and systems used for teleworking.
ISO standard 27001 is a best practice standard for managing information security and can be applied to telework. It includes controls for mobile devices (A.6.2.1) and teleworking (A.6.2.2). These include detailed descriptions of controls to protect information accessed, processed, or stored outside the business such as:
Who can telework (e.g. IT staff, sales staff, managers etc.)
Which services are available for teleworkers (e.g., payroll systems, invoicing systems, etc.)
Which information can be accessed through telework (e.g., KPI dashboards, customer details etc.)
Which access controls are applied before access to information and resources is granted (e.g., password, two-factor authentication, etc.)
How devices and remote sites should be configured, protected, and used (e.g., devices with cryptography, no use of shared rooms to work, information backup, etc.)
The Role of VPNs and Data Encryption in Safeguarding Remote Work
When employees are spread out across different locations, securing the connections between their devices and company systems becomes crucial. Two of the most effective tools for this are Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and data encryption.
A VPN creates a secure, encrypted tunnel for data traveling between an employee’s device and the organization’s network. This means that even if someone manages to intercept the data that’s being transmitted—say, over a public Wi-Fi network in a coffee shop—it will be unreadable without the right encryption key. Well-known VPN solutions like Cisco AnyConnect and OpenVPN are popular choices among businesses for this very reason.
Data encryption takes this protection a step further, applying robust security not only during transmission but also while information is stored on devices (data at rest). By encrypting sensitive files, emails, and other data, companies ensure that even if a device is lost or stolen, any information stored on it remains inaccessible to unauthorized individuals. For comprehensive coverage, it’s best practice to enable disk encryption (such as BitLocker for Windows or FileVault for Mac) along with using encrypted communication channels.
By combining VPN usage with strong data encryption—both in transit and at rest—remote teams can significantly minimize the risk of unauthorized access, eavesdropping, or data leaks. This layered approach is a cornerstone of effective remote work security.
Building a Security-Conscious Remote Workforce
One crucial but often overlooked aspect of remote work security is ensuring that employees are not just equipped with the right tools, but also the right knowledge. Even the most sophisticated security measures can falter if staff are unaware of the threats they might face outside the safe confines of an office environment.
Remote teams are especially vulnerable to common cyber threats like phishing emails or social engineering attacks, which tend to increase when employees are working offsite and away from IT support. Without regular training and awareness initiatives, even a single click on a malicious link can lead to data breaches, ransomware attacks, or compromise of business-critical systems.
By educating employees on how to recognize suspicious emails, use strong passwords, and avoid risky behaviors online, organizations greatly reduce their likelihood of falling victim to cybercrime. Periodic security updates—such as simulated phishing campaigns or bite-sized learning modules—help keep awareness high and reinforce healthy security habits.
Ultimately, investing in a culture of security awareness fosters resilient remote teams. It empowers employees to play an active role in safeguarding not just their own devices, but the company’s entire information ecosystem.
Securing Your Remote Work Environment With GRC Software
At StandardFusion, we believe in leveraging modern processes and technology to increase productivity and quality, while reducing costs. It is well known that governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) tools can be used for compliance management, risk assessments, audit management, vendor management, and even streamlining the implementation of standards such as ISO27001. But how do they help when everyone is working at home?
Firstly, using a GRC tool to understand your compliance posture will go a long way to easily understanding your security gaps for remote workers. Once these gaps have been identified, it is vital to track the implementations and improvements to existing controls and polices. Finally, policy communication, testing and on-going control monitoring needs to be implemented and automated.
Secondly, GRC tools allow you to understand your risks at an asset and threat level. This makes it easy to perform additional risk assessments as situations arise, such as moving to remote work. As new risks are identified it is important to track corrective actions and create mitigating strategies, as needed. Maintaining an active risk registry enables business to move away from being reactive and become proactive.
Lastly, GRC tools are the number one way for any organization to get a birds eye view of their complete risk and compliance program(s). Generating meaning full reports, reviewing dashboards and collaborating with team members are all key elements to any full featured GRC platform. GRC tools are designed to bring visibility and security to every corner of your business, whether that be at the workplace or the employees and everywhere in between.
What's Next?
The acceptance and popularity of remote work demonstrated its suitability on a massive scale. It will be increasingly important for businesses to identify, assess and mitigate the risks that working from home poses to organizations.
Business can apply industry standard controls, such as ISO 27001, to ensure information security risks of teleworkers are adequately addressed. Leverage a GRC tool to easily identify security gaps and new risks. Track improvements, corrective actions, as well as policy communication across your entire organization. Take a proactive approach towards information security and bring visibility and security to every corner of your business.
