{"id":30363,"date":"2020-08-18T06:00:07","date_gmt":"2020-08-18T12:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"https://www.webroot.com/blog/?p=30363"},"modified":"2020-08-21T09:50:50","modified_gmt":"2020-08-21T15:50:50","slug":"wfh-for-the-long-haul-these-tips-will-help-you-create-a-cyber-resilient-home-network","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https://www.webroot.com/blog/2020\/08\/18\/wfh-for-the-long-haul-these-tips-will-help-you-create-a-cyber-resilient-home-network\/","title":{"rendered":"WFH for the Long Haul? These Tips Will Help You Create a Cyber Resilient Home Network"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Cyber resilience is being put to the test during the coronavirus pandemic. As more and more users work from home, it\u2019s becoming increasingly difficult for IT teams to ensure uniform cyber security on home devices and networks that they don\u2019t own or control. At the same time, cybercriminals are using the pandemic<\/a> to launch more deceptive attacks. In this post, we\u2019ll break down a few steps you can take to add resilience to your home network, so you don\u2019t have to sacrifice security for convenience during the global pandemic. We cover all of these tips and more in our Work From Home Playbook<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The secure tunnel<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We lose a measure of security\nthe minute we step outside the protective shell of our corporate network. The\naverage home network is significantly less secure than corporate networks. This\nleaves remote workers more vulnerable to attacks anytime they\u2019re not connected\nto the corporate network. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luckily, you can easily\nimprove your at-home security by using a virtual private network (VPN). With a VPN,\nyou can establish a secure tunnel between your home network and your corporate\nenvironment, making your home connection more immune to outsider attacks. A VPN\nextends your home network \u2013 or connection from the local coffee shop \u2013 across a\npublic network, allowing you to interact with your corporate system as if you\nwere connected directly to it. This allows applications to operate securely and\nencryption to be enabled within the connection, ultimately privatizing any data\nbeing shared or input.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Handshake hygiene <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A clean handshake is healthier\nin the physical world. And it\u2019s the same with the digital handshake between\nyour home devices and your corporate network. Anytime someone from outside the\nnetwork attempts to log on, there\u2019s a risk the person isn\u2019t who they say they\nare. Login credentials are stolen all the time. In many scenarios, all it takes\nis a username and password to gain access to the company network. Once inside,\ncyberthieves can unload malicious payloads or find additional user credentials\nto launch even more pernicious attacks. But by adding just one extra layer of\nsecurity in the form of an additional checkpoint, it\u2019s possible to thwart most\nattacks that rely on only a username and password. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why multi-factor\nauthentication (MFA) has become the go-to method for adding extra verification\nsteps to confirm that the person logging on is truly who they say they are.\nWith MFA, the user verifies their identity using knowledge only they have, like\na password or answers to challenge questions. As an additional verification\nstep, the user supplies an item, like a YubiKey or a one-time password sent to\na mobile device. Lastly is an inherited characteristic unique to who the\nperson, such as a fingerprint, retina scan, or voice recognition. In today\u2019s\nhighly regulated business environment, most businesses make MFA mandatory for\nemployees logging in from outside the network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, second and third lines of defense<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Cybercriminals have a full quiver\nof options when it comes to launching attacks. But the good news is that there\nare also multiple solutions for defending home systems against them. The best\nway to secure the home network is to use a multi-layered cyber resilience\nstrategy, also known as defense in depth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This approach uses multiple\nlayers of security to protect home devices and the networks they\u2019re connected\nto. Here\u2019s what that looks like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n