For almost every organization, at least a few employees will be working remotely on a given day. Even when you don’t have a remote or hybrid working policy, employees might still work remotely under some circumstances. For instance, people might work remotely when traveling on business, when on leave or to tackle urgent issues on a sick day.
Consequently, you need to enable secure remote access to critical applications. The flip side of this is that traditional security measures often fall short.
Regular penetration testing can help you tackle risks emerging from remote access to your systems. One might argue that the costs and logistics of conducting these tests can be daunting for many organizations. This is where PTaaS comes into play, offering a more flexible and cost-effective solution to improve remote workers’ security .
In this blog, we will explore the risks associated with remote work environments, and how PTaaS solutions for remote teams is the ideal choice.
Risks in Your Remote Working Environment
When employees work remotely you automatically expand your network perimeter, creating new vulnerabilities. Employees may connect to the corporate network from various locations—including airports, hotels, and hospitals—using their personal devices and networks, often with little oversight from IT. This decentralization can lead to increased exposure to cyber threats, particularly if security measures are not properly implemented.
Risk 1: Vulnerable Access Points
Your team very likely utilizes virtual private networks (VPNs) to remotely access corporate resources securely. However, these VPNs can become targets for attackers, especially if they have not been updated with the latest security patches. Conducting an internal penetration test allows organizations to identify and address these vulnerabilities before they can be exploited. By evaluating security controls related to VPNs, and allied solutions like remote desktop protocols (RDP), and virtual desktops, PTaaS improves your remote workers’ security.
Risk 2: Increased Social Engineering Attacks
Employees working remotely can also become targets of social engineering attacks, where attackers manipulate employees into divulging sensitive information. Even with robust spam filters, a phishing email can still slip through the cracks, especially when employees check personal emails on their home devices. Implementing phishing simulations can provide invaluable insights into employee susceptibility to these attacks, serving as both a warning and an educational tool for recognizing potential threats. From there you can take appropriate measures to flag up and correct behavior and susceptibility.
Risk 3: Lack of Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
A 2FA authentication oversight on a remote employee’s devices poses a far greater risk compared to onsite devices, as attackers can exploit the absence of this critical security layer to gain unauthorized access to sensitive information. Enforcing 2FA across all remote access points is essential. Utilizing PTaaS solutions to check controls set by remote teams can help identify weaknesses in authentication practices and ensure that 2FA is implemented effectively, providing an additional layer of security.
Risk 4: Insecure Home Networks
Employees working from home (or a beach resort) may connect to unsecured Wi-Fi networks or fail to secure their home routers, exposing company data to potential interception by cybercriminals. Conducting an external penetration test is crucial to identify and remediate vulnerabilities in the home network environments of employees. Use PTaaS for real-time threat protection by simulating attacks to assess how well remote work infrastructure holds up against external threats, guiding and priortizing necessary improvements to network security.
Risk 5: Inadequate Endpoint Security
When working remotely, employees may need to use personal devices that may lack the necessary security controls found on company-managed devices. This can lead to increased vulnerability. Implementing robust endpoint protection solutions and conducting regular penetration tests can help organizations assess the security posture of employee devices. You need to secure employee devices when they’re working remotely, with PTaaS, to ensure that all endpoints are regularly tested for vulnerabilities, helping to create a more secure remote working environment.
Regular penetration testing is vital to uncovering these security risks and ensuring that organizations can adapt their security strategies to the evolving landscape of remote work. Ongoing pentesting helps identify weaknesses, prioritize vulnerabilities, and validate remediation efforts, providing a comprehensive view of the organization’s security posture.
Why Siemba’s PTaaS is Ideal
Siemba’s PTaaS for real-time threat protection is an effective solution for organizations looking to secure their remote workforce. By combining automated scans with manual evaluations, Siemba delivers continuous security testing that adapts to the unique challenges posed by remote work. The detailed reports provided by Siemba’s pentesting services identify vulnerabilities, and assess the effectiveness of existing security controls, empowering organizations to make informed decisions about their security strategies.
Moreover, Siemba’s PTaaS solutions for remote teams ensure that organizations can maintain a proactive stance against potential threats. This approach allows businesses to adapt quickly to the dynamic security landscape, ensuring that their protective measures are always up-to-date.
Conclusion
Relying solely on initial security measures is no longer sufficient. PTaaS for your distributed workforce is equally crucial, and arguably more so. PTaaS helps you stay ahead of potential threats, ensuring robust protection for all employees—and the data and assets they access—regardless of their location.
Siemba’s pentesting services provide the comprehensive security assessments necessary to safeguard your remote workforce effectively. By partnering with Siemba, you get scalable, repeatable and reliable pentesting to protect your sensitive data and maintain operational integrity.
Ready to enhance your organization’s cybersecurity posture and protect your remote teams with real-time threat detection? Contact Siemba today to learn more about our PTaaS solutions.
