Where are you on the journey to safe remote work, really?

Flash back a year. The typical company comprised of a central office hosting physical critical business systems, field-based workers with mobile company devices, and sporadic home working–many with unreliable internet access.

Now, thanks to a force greater than gravity, companies have been made to adapt, and it’s fair to say that some have knocked homeworking out of the park. Others, not quite so much….

While we might’ve gotten to grips with apps like Microsoft Teams and Zoom quicker than a duck to water, many homeworkers’ systems have still not adjusted to the demands of the modern world (and the security processes they have in place haven’t either).

But if companies ignore the criticality of having secure systems backing up their work, fast – and recovering it even faster – they may not be around long enough to bear witness to whatever the coveted ‘new norm’ will really look like.

So, safe remote working – what is it?

Writing from my ad-hoc home office, I want to know that my documents are safe if, and when, my laptop goes down (from tea spillage or otherwise), that I can recover from downtime quickly and completely, and that the threat of being hacked is somewhere between slim to none, sparing both my personal information and my business’s critical data and systems.

Why?

Because besides from backing the quality of my work (and my company’s) and wanting to protect it at all costs, now is about adapting to the long game and understanding that to emerge from 2020 strong, if at all, I must adjust to the business of the future, which will live, in part, in the Cloud.

Reliable home working means that your data, documents, company secrets and the like are stored away safely, securely and free from hackers– as well as being accessible from anywhere, and any device. This means that if your laptop dies suddenly, that document you were working on can be recovered in an instant from your phone, iPad or other digital device.

Cloud protection and recovery - stopping 21st century businesses turning to dust

Since March, our inboxes have been filled with constant reminders that the next generation of businesses will feature homeworking, in its entirety or, an a more impromptu basis. Now, what we, as employees, or customers, or partners, want to know, is what the future holds for us, and how we’re going to be supported in this brave new world.

So, what’s the answer?

• The future shrinking workforce. In the unfortunate battle to stay afloat, businesses are looking at reworking their structures and reducing headcount to save money, whilst managing to operate more efficiently.

What this means? There’s now much less room for error which means the patience for slow laptops and dodgy VPN’s will go very much out of the window. It’s time to consider whether your technology and servers will stand the test of time or whether you need to adapt your current security measures.

• A surge in work-life balance. Getting hours back into our weeks from lack of commuting, has helped many people be more productive and those reaping the benefits are now wanting more options to #WFH.

What this means? Your employees and their tech needs to be safe and secure, from wherever they choose to work. Otherwise, put their quality work at risk, and risk loss of talent as they lose their work…time…patience…?

• Reaching global markets. Our borders may have closed but the digital doors to afar countries are very much open and helping businesses ready and willing to grow their offerings.

What this means? Competition is expanding and we must respond and adapt accordingly – with processes fit for the job. However for those that succeed, threats to critical data will likely increase from hackers wanting to know new secrets – and systems must be able to take the heat.

• Outsourcing IT. With new working standards comes new possibilities, including ones to have your workforce anywhere in the world. So why have your IT servers stuck in your London office, where your IT teams aren’t?

What this means? Companies are turning to outsourcing their technology and connectivity because they want to know that when things go wrong, they have specialists in place to solve problems instantly and reduce downtime.

It’s been said that the office might just become a showroom for client events and business meetings. So, what strong businesses are looking for now is access to their information, anytime, anywhere, and from any device, using trusted solutions that give them peace of mind that their data is secure in the hands of an operator, and protected against threat at all costs.

Makes sense, right? So what’s slowing you down?

1. 'If it aint broke, don't fix it'
   
   No business can say with absolute confidence that they trust solely in their physical digital systems. Can you?
   
   Consider this: 88% of UK businesses suffered a cyberthreat between May 2019 and May 2020. As well as this, 65,000 attempts to hack SMEs occur in the UK everyday – 4,500 of these are successful.*
   
   So, while it might be that your customer’s business hasn’t recognised issues in the past, who’s to say this won’t happen in future, as the world in its entirety becomes more reliant on digital?
   
2. Seeing is believing [and frankly, trusting]
   
   The thought of putting your trust into something non-tangible – essentially putting your company data, secrets, finances and more into a mystical place and not guarded by lions in a physical cage, will never be plain sailing. But today’s trusted Cloud programmes like DataProtect+ leverage world-class data security solutions that protect systems from downtime and cyberthreat in any environment. Can you say the same about your computer hardware?
   
3. It’s not cyber-secure
   
   Security concerns, where hackers are involved, aren’t confined to cloud solutions. When you get down to it, you’ll soon see that the biggest cyber security issues have come about when business haven’t invested into quality digital assets. It’s all well and good putting your hardware in offices with state of the art CCTV, but cyberattacks occur more often that physical burglaries. It’s about selecting a trusted Cloud provider for your data protection and recovery processes.
   
4. “It doesn’t support my platforms”
   
   Wrong. Trusted providers now have realised the potential of secure cloud data servers to support and protect today’s data-driven businesses. This means they have built their solutions in accordance. Cloud solutions for data, recovery and cyber protection now offer complete support for a whole host of platforms that will suit your business structures. (You just need to look in the right place…)[link to V1]
   
5. “I don’t have time to switch”
   
   It’s not uncommon to be concerned about system integrations to suit your servers. However leading service providers now are in-line with the 21st century and have adapted their services to suit businesses of all shapes and sizes, making integration with Cloud serves simple and seamless.

It’s time to stop letting our laptops be the gateway to everything and maintain a tight grip on the power of our workforce, when our systems and processes lose it.

Advance your journey to safe remote working with DataProtect+. Providing the complete suite of data protection services, in one simple affordable bundle.

*Source – CSO Online