COVID-19 has forced the majority of businesses to migrate their physical operations to a digital workspace. On a positive note, this has created excellent opportunities for Virtual Assistants working from home, as companies seek to systemise their processes by hiring more remote staff. However, the internet is an enigmatic domain, filled with malignant actors lurking undetected on the sidelines. Hackers are highly adept at exploiting complacent users and businesses for financial gain.
Data breaches or violations belie the excellent work of companies and Virtual Assistants and jeopardise the futures of many. The pertinence of online security cannot be understated, as businesses increasingly outsource their work to global Virtual Assistants.
This article will be discussing some essential steps to ensure that your online security remains impregnable from hackers. Developing these habits would enable you to focus on the things that matter as an aspiring Virtual Assistant or business whilst remaining vigilant.
Use Encrypted Communication
Whether you are a business or a Virtual Assistant, it is vital to ensure that peeping toms are not monitoring your outsourced work. Encryption entails the scrambling of data into something incoherent and illegible. In end-to-end encryption, only the receiving device can decipher the conveyed message by the sender. Thankfully, widely accepted applications such as Zoom now have end-to-end encryption. The likelihood of security breaches on such platforms are few and far between. However, popular work-chat applications such as Slack only encrypts data in transmission or at rest. It is vital to remain mindful of the limitations of each platform.
Despite the risks, there is a tendency for employees to carry their business discussions over to other, less secure social media platforms. For example, Facebook Messenger’s proprietary encryption is turned off by default, opening sensitive data to intruders. Should hackers gain unrestricted access to this information, they could encrypt it and charge a ransom to decipher it; this is known as ransomware. Be very wary of the messaging applications that you engage with after work.
Where possible, prioritise the use of highly secure platforms such as Signal for work-related affairs, saving social media platforms for your Friday night bevvies.
Two-Factor Authentication (2AF)
2FA works by adding an extra layer of security to your login details to ensure that the user is the person they claim to be. Login details can be obtained easily, especially if you use similar passwords and keywords across multiple websites. However, the employment of 2FA mitigates that, for it requires unique details that only the user remains privy to. That is one reason why the 2FA system is so prevalent across all banks; it works beautifully and efficiently!
Today, almost all social media platforms and messaging platforms are 2FA compatible. Many reputable authenticators are available in the Google and Apple app stores, such as Google and Microsoft. Each authenticator requires you to tether each of your respective accounts to generate a unique code for each platform. Your code resets on each account login instance to avoid unwelcome visitors from stealing it.
However, do take note that there is no alternative way to login into any of your tethered accounts if the smart device with the authenticator installed on it runs out of battery. Be sure to keep your smart device charged!
Avoid Using The Same Password
As touched upon earlier, identical keywords or passwords are common across media. However, it’s much safer to avoid doing this – your portfolio of login details should remain wholly unique. To put this into perspective, if someone manages to attain one password for one account, you now run the risk of experiencing multiple account breaches. Constantly abusing the logging in with “Google” or “Facebook” features shares the same risks.
To paraphrase the sage advice of Edward Snowden, use absurd phrases or figures of speech that a machine or hacker can’t easily interpret. Always check to see if your password strength is at least “good” or “strong.” Your password is your first line of defense, and your online presence is only as secure as its foundations.
Understandably, remembering a lengthy list of original passwords is a burdensome task. Should that be the case, consider using a password manager to store all of your precious login details. At first glance, the notion of storing all of your data into one singular database sounds far riskier. However, almost all password managers such as NordPass share fortress-like impenetrability. Password data is fully encrypted before being sent out from the host device. Moreover, each application requires a master password login and is 2FA-compatible.
Computer Health
Ever come across those pesky “accept-all cookies” click-wrap agreements on news websites? This practice is conspicuous across most sites. Cookies are embedded trackers in your web browsers that harvest intermediate data based on search history. Many retail platforms such as Amazon track those clicks to advertise products and services related to them.
While cookies are not inherently harmful, the threat of hackers hijacking them remains salient. Applications such as CCleaner allows you to remove unnecessary cookies and cached data across all web browsers. Weekly clean-ups are ideal for reducing the probability of hidden onlookers encroaching into your privacy.
In addition, visiting or downloading a file from an insecure website places your device in danger of installing a virus. Thankfully, active anti-virus software such as AVG offers 24/7 web security, with most illicit websites being hastily intercepted by it. However, it would be wise to schedule deep virus scans monthly via your anti-virus software of choice
The concept of computer health is often neglected; strengthen it, and you are less likely to jeopardise the online security of both you and your company. Whether you are a business owner or a Virtual Assistant, these proven steps will allow you to enjoy an illustrious career unperturbed.
