Perhaps you are one of those lucky employees who works for a company with a liberal 'work from home' policy. You spend your Fridays at the local coffee shop, typing away and answering emails. You hear the barista call out your order for a double-shot vanilla latte. You eagerly pop up from your seat to get your warm beverage "“ but when you return to your table, your laptop is gone! It's been snatched by some opportunistic thief. How are you going to explain this one to your boss?
Theft happens all too often. Clever pickpockets pinch our mobile phones out of our backpacks and crooked criminals crack our windows to get our laptop bags. While stealing is bad enough, there is another danger implicit in snatching a business device "“ data breach.
Crooks can leverage this stolen data for themselves or pass off the device to someone who has a background in hacking. Before you know it, your accounts and your company could be victimized. Just about the most expensive coffee you ever bought, huh?
Thankfully, cybersecurity liability insurance can protect your business from financial damages brought on by data breach. Of course, there are ways you can prevent data breach from happening even if your work device falls into the wrong hands.
Device Locator: When you lose something important, what's the first thing you do? Look for it, obviously. But if you can't find it on your own, you might want to try a more techie solution. A device locator app is an easy addition to any mobile device and can be a big help in finding a misplaced or purloined cell phone.
Please be safe when trying to track down a stolen cell device. It's better to ask the police for help than to take the law into your own hands.
Remote Wipe: So, you've accepted that your phone or laptop is gone for good. That's okay, all hope is not lost. You can still protect your data from prying eyes by installing a remote wipe app for your computer, mobile phone or tablet. This nifty service will allow you to reset the device in question to its factory settings, thereby deleting any traces of sensitive information. This is a must-have for any employee.
Password & PIN Protections: But let's say you forgot to put these apps on your work devices. Well, let's hope you at least used a PIN or password that prevents interlopers from accessing your device. It may not be foolproof, but it's a basic protection that you have no excuse for not using.
Sign Out of All Devices: It's pretty common for web users to remain signed in to a number of accounts including email, social media and collaboration services, rather than log out after each session. But it only takes a moment for a trespasser to post an offensive tweet from your work account or spy on your communications. Thankfully, most web services will include a " sign me out of all devices " button in their security settings.
Report the Theft Immediately: In that same vein, it's vital that you report the theft to your IT department immediately. They can monitor your accounts for any suspicious activity and work on getting you back into the swing of things.
As you can see, stolen or lost devices should not be taken lightly. Make a wise decision and invest in cybersecurity liability insurance today to protect yourself from digital threats and data breach. Visit CyberPolicy for more information.
