JUNE 2020 • LONGISLANDPRESS.COM 19
Right now, many people are
hanging on to every news story
about the coronavirus. They’re
checking social media more
than usual. They’re setting up
home offices, learning how to
use new collaboration tools
with their colleagues, or trying
to figure out what to do in the
absence of income.
They’re also dealing with their
kids being at home all day and
wading into homeschooling. On
top of all this, they’re worried
about the spread of the virus
and its effect on the economy.
While people are stressed, busy,
and distracted, cybercriminals
are focused and ready to go.
Cyberattacks almost always
spike during times of global
crisis, and right now, the Federal
Bureau of Investigation reports
that the coronavirus crisis
is no exception. Scammers
are hacking into databases,
sending out phishing emails,
and leveraging the pandemic
to convince victims to make
donations to fake organizations
or buy counterfeit personal
protection equipment.
Analysts speculate that
cybercriminals will cause $6
trillion in damages in 2021, and
in 2020, damages are mounting
as criminals take advantage
of this situation. Research
indicates that phishing emails
have increased by 667 percent
between February and mid-
April — that’s a sev-enfold
increase in just a few weeks.
Being aware of the risk of
cybercrime is the first step.
While many people think
they are immune, no one
is free of this risk — in fact,
cybercriminals spend a lot of
Tech Insights
HOW TO PROTECT YOUR BUSINESS FROM COVID-19 CYBERCRIME
time targeting small businesses
and organizations. To protect
your business, practice these
security essentials.
HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF
1. Be hypervigilant of
incoming emails
As indicated above, phishing
emails are on the rise.
Cybercriminals are relying
on people to have their guard
down, and you and your
employees need to be vigilant.
A lot of these emails contain
dangerous attachments,
while others include links to
malicious websites. Never
open an attachment or click a
link from an unknown sender.
If the sender’s ad-dress looks
familiar, take a few extra
minutes to verify their identity.
Scam artists often make their
emails look like they’re coming
from someone you know or
from an organization such as
the U.S. Centers for Disease
Control (CDC).
2. Secure all work-fromhome
computers
Another reason cybercrime
is exploding right now is the
unprecedented number of
people who are working from
home. If your employees are
working from home, you need
to take extra steps to secure
your network.
Ideally, you should have your
employees work on computers
issued by your business. Home
computers tend to be full of
potentially dangerous videos,
photos, or downloads.
Make sure all the computers
your employees are using have
a firewall that is turned on and
con-figured correctly. Firewall
misconfigurations can create
extensive vulnerabilities in your
network.
Finally, have your employees
access everything through
a virtual private network
(VPN). A VPN encrypts all
the data transmitted from
their computers, creating an
additional layer of security.
Ideally, you should use a
dual-factor VPN that requires
your employees to enter their
password, plus an additional
piece of verification such as a
code texted to their phone.
3. Beef up your password
strategy
Weak passwords threaten
the security of your tech
environment. Make sure your
employees un-derstand the
importance of never using
easy-to-guess passwords such
as 12345, Password, their own
names, or details visible on
their social media pages.
Additionally, they shouldn’t let
their browsers store passwords.
Instead, you may want to look
into a password manager such
as LastPass or 1Password. These
applications store passwords,
but they can’t be accessed as
easily as most browsers.
Cybercrime can cost you money,
reduce your productivity,
harm your reputation, and
cause other types of damage
to yourself, your employees,
and your business. To reduce
your vulnerability, contact a
cybersecurity professional
who can help you identify the
processes, products, and practices
you need to stay as safe
as possible, especially during
a global crisis.
Custom Computer Specialists
Right People. Right Results.®
MaryAnn Benzola is the
director of marketing and
business development
at Custom Computer
Specialists. She is the
author of Tech Insights, a
weekly blog published at
customonline.com
By MaryAnn Benzola
/LONGISLANDPRESS.COM
/customonline.com
