The pandemic has perhaps forever changed how and where we work. During the early spring, it caused many companies to move to remote operations with employees working from home.
This caused companies in DFW and other places to discover the cost savings and versatility that came along with a remote workforce. And many of them are not planning to go back to the pre-pandemic work approach as a result.
77% of surveyed organizations said that post-pandemic, they planned to have an increase in employees working from home 3+ days per week.
While remote working can benefit a company and its employees in a number of ways, one potential hazard is the increase in cybersecurity risk.
If companies don’t have a solid plan for monitoring and managing work-from-home employee devices, they can end up with data breaches or malware infections that travel from a remote employee computer to a cloud storage account.
Since the pandemic began, 20% of companies report they’ve experienced an IT security incident due to a remote worker.
How do you ensure employee devices are secure when they’re not located in the same place?
The Importance of Managed IT for Remote Teams
Managed IT services are not only for in-office hardware and networks, they can also make managing remote workforce security much less stressful.
Managed support allows employee devices to be kept secure in a number of ways and enables your business to enjoy the cost savings of using a remote team without having to sacrifice your cybersecurity.
Patch & Update Management
One of the major contributors to data breaches and malware infections is the lack of doing timely updates to operating systems, software, and firmware.
It’s hard enough when you have all your employee computers in the same physical location to ensure they’re all updated regularly, but when they’re in various employee homes, it can be even harder.
Managed IT support ensures that no matter where employees are working, their computers are kept updated and secure with the latest security patches.
Data Backup & Disaster Recovery
Data loss is a big risk when your business data is stored offsite. A hard drive can crash, or an employee laptop can be stolen. Companies can also have challenges getting all their business data from a remote employee if they suddenly leave the organization.
Using managed backup and disaster recovery, you can ensure that each remote employee’s device is being backed up to a central location and your data is secure and available to you whenever you need it.
24/7 Threat Monitoring
With employees working from home, phishing attacks have increased. Phishing scammers are taking advantage of the fact that most home networks are not as secure as business networks yet can be transmitting all the same sensitive data.
Approximately 37% of remote employees have seen an increased risk of phishing attack within the last five months.
Managed cybersecurity services through Leverage IT Group includes multiple protections, including 24/7 threat monitoring that allows us to protect your extended remote network at the first sign of any trouble.
Managed Antivirus/Anti-Malware
If you don’t have a cohesive plan when it comes to WFH employee device protection, you could end up with work computers having different levels of antivirus protection, leaving your data vulnerable.
Today’s networks are interconnected through cloud solutions, even if they’re spread out over different physical locations. This means your network is only as strong as the weakest device security.
Through managed antivirus/anti-malware protection, you can ensure that all remote employee devices have the same high level of security and that the software is being updated regularly to add new threat profiles.
24/7 Help Desk
Employees can get in trouble with a phishing email or malicious website more easily when working from home. They can’t just ask the person at the next desk for a second option about a suspicious email like they can when at the office.
With managed IT services, your employees have the IT support they need and someone they can turn to for help identifying a phishing email or with any other IT support question.
We offer 24/7 helpdesk support, which accommodates remote employees that may be working flex hours. Not only does our help desk support improve your team’s security, it also improves productivity by getting them needed help fast.
You Can Focus On What Drives Your Business Forward
When your IT is being handled professionally, you can focus on forward motion for your company. You’re also freed up to make the best decisions on your remote working policies, because you don’t have to factor in less security as a trade-off.
Your remote team is just as secure and supported as your in-office teams, and your entire organization benefits as a result.
Get Your Remote Workers Supported & Secure
Leverage IT Group can help your DFW area business with a customized managed IT services plan that protects your remote teams and your company as a whole.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation. Call (469) 458-0559 or reach us online.