We all have them and they all can cost you business. Poor habits on your network seem harmless to your job and might even make shortcuts seamless. Compounded, these minor habits manifest into critical downtime and permeate throughout department manifold.
In the long run, these bad habits will hurt you and leave some of your IT security personnel dumbfounded. The cyberworld is dangerous, so please don’t make it any worse. Taking simple measures to turn habits into good fortunes increase workflow with your security team.
“Network Hygiene”
Always treat your workstation and tools as if they were yours. Take note of the applications and processes you use on a daily basis and be sure to enable the automatic update setting. Maintaining your operating system is also pertinent. Web browsers, mail clients plugins need patching and take only minutes to fulfill. Most updates take only minutes and they’ll bolster your devices protection against malware.
Malicious Links
Phishing email attacks filter into quarantine junk file for a reason. There’s no reason to be a hero in this scenario. No, that is not a blue chip prospect, most likely the filtered email is from a millionaire in Idaho who wants to buy a half million brake pads. Stay as far away from the links as you can. Don’t even hover your cursor over it. Your IT personnel are already doing their mightiest keeping fluffy in the chamber of secrets.
USB Responsibility
Personal data and storage drives can be the most threatening of all. A good backup of data doesn’t entail leaving your USB drive in a gym locker at planet fitness. After you backup sensitive information, your next step should be hiding that personal data stash in a safe place in your home or at work, or utilizing Vision’s managed passwords offering. You would never leave your Galaxy or iPhone behind on a bench in a busy area, USBs need to be given the same treatment.
If you’re looking for more safety practice on the Internet of Things or interested in evaluating the safety of your network, here are additional resources.
