Cisco is warning that remote workers represent a security menace because overall they are more likely to be lax about
their online behavior based on the mistaken belief that the Internet is getting safer.A Cisco-sponsored poll of 2,000 remote workers and IT staff around the world indicates that corporate security officials believe their remote workers are being less diligent, which corresponds with what the remote workers themselves say.Some of the symptoms of this laxity are careless opening of e-mail attachments from unknown sources, use of corporate machines for personal use, letting non-company personnel use their machines, tapping into neightbors’ unprotected wireless networks on the sly and accessing corporate networks from machines not managed by the company.These are troubling results, but fixing the problem is pretty standard stuff that can easily be overlooked: continue to educate remote workers about threats and the importance of following safe proceedures.
“What we’ve found in year two [of this survey] reinforces the need for IT to triangulate awareness, education, and communication between their teams, executives, and employees,” said John N. Stewart, Cisco’s chief security officer. “How you communicate and educate employees about essential security practices and policies will be different in Japan than in the United States. It will be different in China than in France. Security awareness and education requires an understanding of your audience’s culture. You have to relate to them and earn their trust. Through trust comes respect and cooperation.
