At a recent cybersecurity breakfast hosted by BOMA/NY (Building Owners and Managers Association of NY), the panelists including: Todd Januzzi, CIO Paramount Group, FBI’s SSA Albert Murray and Raj Goel CISSP, CEO or Brainlink, discussed
“How Vulnerable Are Your Building & Company Operations?”.
Among other cybersecurity topics, the panelists spoke at length about how personal and business cybersecurity practices inform each other, especially when it comes to Wi-Fi and mobile devices.
“We’re implementing the bring your own device policy, meaning we can wipe your phone,” said Todd. “We can control your device, but most of our devices outside of email are not really connected with any systems that we have, within our environment.”
The risks associated with employees using personal devices for work cannot be overstated. Albert weighed in on this modern danger, explaining just how easy a compromised device could harm a business.
“Think about it: if your personal device is compromised, your username and password are compromised as well,” said Albert. “Say, for instance, you use GoToMyPC to access your work computer from your home computer. If your GoToMyPC credentials are compromised, somebody could use those same credentials to log on to your work computer to conduct nefarious activities.”
Raj moved the discussion towards cybersecurity in the home, making the point that most executives’ homes are in many ways a small business in and of themselves.
“When it comes to your home, look at your income statement; if your income is six figures or higher, congratulations, you’re not a family, you’re a small business,” said Raj. “You have to treat it the way you would a small business. Engage with proper IT practitioners. You need good firewalls, you need good antivirus software, you need good security practices.”
Similarly, just as you would train and restrict your employees’ use of IT at your office, the same consideration should be given to your children at home.
“If you’ve got kids under the age of five or six, you can keep them on the family network; seven years and older you’re better off getting a good corporate firewall and setting up your Wi-Fi for the kids that’s off your family network, because the kids will do stuff you can’t imagine,” said Raj. “Monitor what they’re doing; talk to them.”
The major recommendations imparted by the panel included:
- Employ a comprehensive and security-focused Bring Your Own Device Policy for employees
- Segregate Wi-Fi networks to keep corporate members, employees and guests separate from each other
- Consider the value of your home (and the data you access there), and apply the appropriate cybersecurity measures and practices to avoid any risks
Want to ensure your employees understand your expectations for security when it comes to mobile devices, Wi-Fi and more? Contact Raj today at (917) 685-7731 or raj@brainlink.com to hold an informative Lunch & Learn event at your firm, or to have him join your next conference.