There are certain things you should never do when it comes to your work computer. Our latest blog article captures the top six things you should avoid doing on your work computer. This will protect both yourself and the business from possible security and privacy issues.
1) Don’t store personal data on your works computer
You shouldn’t make your work computer a storage solution for your personal data or email. This is to protect your own privacy as you can not be sure that other people at work won’t look at the files or emails.
You also run the risk of losing access to that data if you leave the business, the business fails and suddenly closes or via a staff member deleting that data. Remember your own personal data isn’t business critical and it can be wiped out by the businesses either on purpose or by accident.
2) Don’t login to personal sites and services
Sure, we are all guilty of wanting to check our personal email or take a quick peek at Facebook or our other social media accounts while at work, but you should not login to your personal accounts on a work computer, especially not a shared one!
Your computers can be monitored, a work colleague (or the boss) may catch you or the browser may save or remember you password – thus the next person to use that computer could access your private data.
3) Don’t connect personal storage devices
Connecting a USB to a work computer could transfer malware to your corporate network. You may not know you have an issue on your home computer but are you sure you want to risk it?
Criminals also actually target organizations by leaving infected thumb drives in parking lots. All they need is one person to pick up the drive and plug it in to a work computer and bam, your network is infected. If you do find a stray USB, destroy it and drop it in the closest bin.
4) Don’t access confidential data on public Wi-Fi
Do not log in to business applications or sensitive data when connected to a public wireless network. There are many risks and you could end up:
- getting your passwords revealed by a password sniffer on the network.
- opening yourself up to “man-in-the-middle” attack.
- connecting to a malicious hotspot.
- having confidential data compromised on an unencrypted network.
5) Do not do use the PC for your side business or job search
You do not want to do these activities on a work computer unless you want to risk getting caught, as your computer activity can be tracked.
Some businesses do full-blown screen recording and others will maintain an overview of sites you visit. Yes, there are different laws in various states and countries regarding privacy and employee monitoring, but you are using a work device on a business network. Doing your own side project during work hours on a business computer won’t go down well with your manager and boss.
6) Don’t allow remote access
Maybe your computer isn’t working the way you want it to – it keeps crashing, is too slow or you are worried you have clicked a dodgy link and inadvertently downloaded malware onto your work device. You don’t want to get in trouble so think about getting that friend who “knows about computers” to have a look remotely, work won’t even know, will they?? DO NOT DO IT!
You would not let that friend walk into the office and start working on your computer, so don’t let them in remotely?
Similarly if someone phones and asks for remote access to your computer, don’t let them in, hang up immediately and let your boss know.
Your business has its own trusted IT people that do work on their computers. If you were on-site, you’d tell your supervisor or boss, if you had a computer concern. Even when working virtually, you should do the same thing.
Allowing remote access is a security and a privacy risk. Your computer could also be set up in a specific way by your company. Your tech-savvy friend is not going to know why and how those particular configurations were established.
This is only a list of some of the common things not to do on your work computer. Remember if you have to question whether to do something or not, it is probably best not to – ie err on the side of caution otherwise you could endanger your data, the business network and your own job. Be smart and be safe.
Do you need help setting up a personal or work computer? We can help out. Our IT experts can install, setup and manage your business computers and networks. Contact us today for a free no obligation meeting!
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