Has your business mapped the equipment used by COVID-19 home workers?

Across the UK, thousands of organisations and businesses have employees working from home because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In our last blog, we looked at the information security implications for empty workplaces.

This week, we need to examine the potential information security issues organisations may have with the equipment its staff are using at home.

Keeping track of these assets such as laptops, tablets, phones, and printers during lockdown is vital for three key reasons:

1. You need to ensure the personal data and sensitive information in your business remains secure. It’s a legal obligation of businesses and public sector organisations under the General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. You must know who has your assets and who has access to your systems.

2. You need to ensure your system security is updated regularly and maintained. One of the ways hackers access systems is by exploiting issues with software which remain unsolved by updates or patches.

3. If you have leavers or need to make people redundant, you’ll know which assets they have. You’ll need to collect devices to maintain security, and ensure their hard drives are wiped before disposal.

If your business is certified with ISO 27001, or is working towards that, you’ll also need to be aware of the standard’s equipment sub-clause which aims to prevent the loss, damage, theft or compromise of assets and interruption to an organisation’s operations. So, you’ll need to know if the equipment is in a locked room at the end of the day, who has access to it, whether your employee is abiding by a clear desk policy for sensitive documents, if the device is PIN or password protected when unattended, if it’s protected from power surges, and that it’s being properly maintained.

Having Mango compliance software helps you map and keep track of your equipment and easily find out what you need to collect if someone leaves. To arrange a demonstration, call us on 029 2070 3328, email us on info@penarth.co.uk or find a time in our calendar to book via Zoom.