Addressing the challenges of securing remote work environments

Attack surface management is a critical component of cybersecurity. Companies must identify, assess, and secure all possible points of entry to keep hackers out because any point left unsecured becomes a vulnerable attack surface.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, many companies were forced to extend their cybersecurity efforts to address a much broader attack surface. The reason for these new cybersecurity demands was a sudden increase in remote work.

Covid ushered in a new era of distributed workplaces, triggered by the need to keep companies operating despite the shelter-in-place orders imposed during the pandemic. When the orders were lifted, remote work remained, leaving many companies with the challenge of creating a secure remote work environment.

More attack volume, more attack success

To make matters worse, the volume of hacker activity grew substantially in the years following Covid. Statistics on the average number of cyber attacks organizations faced each week climbed from approximately 700 at the start of 2021 to nearly 1,200 by the beginning of 2022. By the third quarter of 2024, the number of attacks had spiked to more than 1,800 per week.

To make matters worse, these attacks also became more effective. By the end of the third quarter of 2021, data breaches had already surpassed 17 percent of the number recorded for all of 2020 and rose by 72 percent over the next two years. Cyberattackers in the post-Covid world had indeed become more active and more effective.

To stay safe in this new threat landscape, companies faced the challenge of balancing flexibility for remote workers and security for their corporate networks. The key to establishing that balance is embracing strategies that acknowledge and address the key weaknesses of remote work environments.

Security weaknesses in remote work environments

Companies must contend with a number of issues to address the extended attack surface that remote work environments bring into play. Many of those issues stem from reduced IT oversight.

With remote workers, IT teams have limited visibility into the devices being used, the networks providing access, and the potential vulnerabilities that exist on those networks. While most companies have invested heavily in orchestrating security oversight of on-site networks, extending that oversight to remote networks requires overcoming several hurdles.

Remote users typically access work platforms through home networks, which have weaker security than that employed on corporate networks. Those who access platforms from public networks -- while working at a coffee shop, library, or other public location -- pose an even greater threat to security.

Physical security is another issue that arises when striving to create secure remote work environments. Hackers can target those in public locations through shoulder surfing, which seeks to physically observe login credentials as they are being entered. Studies show that 40 percent of people have had private information compromised while using public Wi-Fi networks.

Human errors also contribute to the cybersecurity threat posed by remote work environments, especially regarding phishing attacks. Experts suggest remote workers have more distractions because they are in their home environment, which makes them more vulnerable to phishing attacks. Additionally, it is more difficult for remote workers to confirm that a text or email message that appears to be from a trusted colleague is legitimate.

Steps to securing remote work environments

One of the top strategies for creating a secure remote work environment involves deploying enhanced endpoint security measures. Endpoint security seeks to repel attacks by increasing security on devices such as laptops and mobile phones used by remote employees to connect to corporate networks. Patch management processes aimed at keeping software up-to-date and antivirus software are common forms of endpoint security.

Endpoint security also involves controls that scan corporate networks for suspicious activity and challenge access when such activity is detected. Although intrusion detection and prevention systems block attacks in real time when unusual network activity is detected, endpoint detection and response (EDR) systems extend monitoring beyond the network to endpoint devices. EDR systems use behavioral analysis to identify suspicious activity on endpoint devices and then use automated incident responses to repel or contain attacks.

Another key step in securing remote work environments is providing ongoing cybersecurity training to remote employees. By educating employees on how to spot and prevent common and emerging threats, companies enlist them in their cybersecurity efforts.

Password protocols are one key topic for employee training. Companies should provide guidelines for effective passwords, explain the need for multi-factor authentication, and map out the best steps to take when an employee believes a password has been compromised.

Training employees on phishing attacks is also vital, as statistics show that 94 percent of organizations fell victim to phishing attacks in 2023. Employees should not only have core training on the basics of phishing attacks, the variations they might experience, and the process for reporting them when they happen, but should also receive notifications alerting them when phishing attacks target others in the company.

Regular security assessments are also crucial for establishing a secure remote work environment. A key element of these assessments is keeping track of emerging threats and how they may affect the company’s extended network. To stay secure, companies must be able to identify and address vulnerabilities before cyberattackers can exploit them.

Security audits identifying new weaknesses in the remote work environment are also vital. Weaknesses can include introducing new components, such as a new personal laptop added by an employee to the remote network, that have not been secured with the latest patches or antivirus definitions. Even Internet of Things (IoT) devices added to home networks, such as smart speakers or doorbells, can introduce new vulnerabilities.

The shift to remote work has brought many benefits to companies, such as providing access to a broader talent pool and reducing overhead costs. However, the shift has also introduced new risks, especially in the realm of cybersecurity.

Companies must step up their cybersecurity efforts to address the extended attack surface in remote work environments. By adding endpoint security to their strategies, educating employees, and regularly assessing their vulnerabilities, companies can reap the benefits of remote work while mitigating their cybersecurity risks.

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Yashin Manraj, CEO of Pvotal Technologies, has served as a computational chemist in academia, an engineer working on novel challenges at the nanoscale, and a thought leader building more secure systems at the world’s best engineering firms. His deep technical knowledge from product development, design, business insights, and coding provides a unique nexus to identify and solve gaps in the product pipeline. The Pvotal mission is to build sophisticated enterprises with no limits that are built for rapid change, seamless communication, top-notch security, and scalability to infinity.