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Remote working: Creating a virtual office network

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24th Jun 2010
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Andrew Fourie outlines the key security concerns for employers extending the office network outside company walls.

The number of remote workers in the UK is on the rise, and whilst there are many benefits to both the organisation and the employee, there are a few areas that need to be considered before setting up multiple remote offices or letting staff work from home. IT security is one of the main challenges; remote workers still need to connect into the company network, but extending network security to them can be costly and time-consuming. Rarely do these employees possess enough technical knowledge to configure and then manage even simple security devices.

One option is to have a roaming IT department that can configure and then maintain, update and manage the security for each office by travelling to each employee’s location. This may seem like the simplest way to ensure home office security, but in reality it is a very costly endeavour. It is not efficient to have IT employees travelling to remote offices to set up a security policy for a single employee.

A better option would be to manage all security through a centralised point (ie headquarters) using a single security device and connection points at each office. The challenge here is connecting all home offices to the central office - no small task when some may be a long distance away. Even a distance of a few miles can make connecting the home office to the headquarters difficult without the right technology. The right technology will connect and secure the remote locations and provide the IT staff at the central office with the ability to configure and manage the security appliance remotely. This would have to be simple to set up so that any employee could install the device themselves, eliminating the need for IT staff travel or for employees to waste time figuring out complicated security configurations.

In addition to ensuring the remote office is secure, extending networks can also improve remote office productivity. Some organisations hesitate to take advantage of remote office policies in part because of security concerns, but also because of concerns over whether or not employees will remain focused on their work when in a more relaxed environment like their own home.

Website restriction policies can also be extended so that remote workers accessing the internet through the company network will not be able to access any site the organisation has blocked at the company headquarters.

Steps for securing remote offices:

  1. Assess the needs of the remote worker; do they need access to the company network? What level of security do they require?
  2. If the company network needs to be extended, use remote office security devices at each home office location so that employees can easily and securely connect to the company network.
  3. Inform and educate remote workers about new network security threats so they are aware of potential network security issues.

Extending the office so that it has virtually no physical limitations can be daunting, but the benefits of doing so can be substantial. By ensuring home offices are secure, employees are able to connect to the network without the worry of any security breaches, remain productive and feel content in their work, and therefore are more likely to remain loyal to the organisation.

Andrew Fourie is UK and Ireland sales and marketing manager of Astaro.

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By appleli
29th Jun 2010 07:02

Microsoft Online Services

 

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