The latest government figures say 40% of UK adults are working remotely, according to the Office for National Statistics. But a big part of remote working is keeping employees, data, and your customers protected – and security is a need-to-have, not a nice-to-have.
At Aurora, we provide IT services and support to help your users work safely and securely, wherever they’re based – in turn enhancing collaboration, efficiency and security across your business. Here are some key ways we do exactly that.
Networking connection
A secure way to browse safely is through a Virtual Private Network (VPN). Put simply, a VPN provides a way to log onto a network while hiding your identity and location, and encrypting your data. This tech solution works by routing any traffic through a VPN server – either at your central office location or through a trusted third party – as a hosted service. This means that any threat actors who try to access your information can’t ‘read’ any data you’re sending or receiving over the internet, and your location will appear to be the VPN server.
Because a VPN securely encrypts your data and hides your location, it’s absolutely essential when browsing, especially when accessing a public WiFi network. It can help prevent hacking, data mining, and unauthorised downloads and installations (for example, ransomware). In turn, this keeps passwords, personal data, company data, and most importantly, payment information safe.
Another tech solution your business could consider is Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD). This provides each user with a virtual desktop hosted on the cloud, and you’d only require minimal apps to be installed on your local device in order to access your virtual desktop. The technology uses Windows multi-user sessions, so several users can securely log on to a session host and access their own virtual desktop. It’s a great tech solution for hosting legacy applications and keeping your data centrally located in a secure environment, rather than traversing the internet.
There are lots of other benefits to using AVD. You won’t need complicated physical infrastructure – just a reliable connection to the Internet, no matter where you choose to work from. We can configure this service to suit the needs of your users, and scale it according to your business needs.
Productivity and collaboration tools for working remotely
Microsoft is our partner of choice, particularly the Microsoft 365 Business suite, which we can set up and roll out for you, handling any licensing needs. Essentials you need to know are:
- It’s a subscription-based model with three tiers: Basic, Standard and Premium.
- All tiers contain Office apps (e.g. Word, Outlook and Teams) as well as 1TB cloud storage, SharePoint access and Microsoft Defender security.
- The Basic tier only runs online with minimal apps and standard security; Standard gives you desktop access too, with some extra apps; and Premium gives you AVD, a more advanced version of Microsoft Defender, plus Intune access (which helps manage accounts and endpoints).
On top of that, there’s Microsoft Copilot to consider, an upcoming advancement in information technology. This is AI integration that works for Microsoft 365 Business, to be released shortly across the Standard and Premium tiers only. It uses AI to assist with everything from writing reports to summarising meeting minutes, forecasting data, pitching a presentation and summarising emails. While it’s not ready just yet, we’re here to help when it lands – and can even support you with training your employees on how to use it.
Security firewalls and antivirus protection
You won’t get far without decent security. While we’ve touched on Microsoft Defender – which offers standard security features – businesses that take their safety seriously will want Microsoft Defender for Business.
It covers all your bases – detection, protection and response – in one cost-effective, comprehensive information technology solution. Businesses love how easy it is to set up, and it can help with the following:
- Boosting threat visibility and remediation through endpoint detection and response.
- Extensive antivirus protection for identifying and thwarting threats.
- Continuous, automated investigation that tracks vulnerabilities across critical assets.
You should also advise your employees to check the SSL certificate of websites they visit while browsing. SSL encrypts data between the remote site and the user’s browser and is an essential feature when accessing all webpages – not just a checkout screen or login portal. It’s even used to encrypt servers, such as email servers. The padlock symbol on the address bar shows whether a website has an SSL certificate, however, it’s wise to check that the address itself contains ‘https’.
Local and personal security
Information technology isn’t just about platforms and passwords. Users need to be cyber savvy, and recognise that a large part of the responsibility rests on themselves, and their actions, including:
- Being wary of unknown senders when accessing emails.
- Avoiding open, shared and public WiFi networks.
- Managing personal and company devices and their permissions.
- Use of lockscreens, passwords and MFA – and not sharing these.
- Physical proximity to others while in public spaces.
That’s where our technology consulting services come in – just get in touch if you need to upskill staff on how to be cyber savvy.
Get in touch with Aurora Technologies today
We help both employers and employees have the freedom and flexibility to work the way they do best. And for that, you need the most secure and reliable tools, coupled with ongoing support and management. Our IT services are tailored to your business budget and requirements and can be scaled up or down as you need. Find out more about our remote working tech solutions here or get in touch here.
