A holistic cybersecurity framework is rendered incomplete and, therefore, ineffective unless the remote workers themselves are protected at the individual level to identify and avoid cyberthreats. This is critical because human errors constitute the biggest vulnerability in the face of an increasingly sophisticated threat landscape irrespective of whether an enterprise has a robust cybersecurity infrastructure in place or not, states Mathew Philip, Senior Director – Alliances & Business Development, APAC, LogMeIn
Some edited excerpts:
How do you think the pandemic has modified the way we work today? What will be the impact on the future?
The pandemic forced organizations the world over to enforce their business continuity plans virtually overnight. The resulting shift to remote work in the wake of the lockdowns is arguably the biggest transformation in the history of global business both in terms of scale and the effect it has had and will continue to have on the ecosystem. Take, for instance, the technological aspect of the paradigm shift. The digital transformation across organizations has already reached the tipping point; that is, reversing this change is no longer practical.
Now let’s take a look at its cultural aspect. In the past year and a half, employees have discovered the benefits of the flexible remote work paradigm. which include better work-life balance, higher professional satisfaction, and more opportunities for saving time and money. And for employers remote work has given them the flexibility of hiring great talent from smaller towns which were otherwise a challenge due to the need to relocate them to the larger cities where the offices were usually based. .While the office setup does indeed offer advantages such as in-person interactions and better opportunities for socialization and networking, market research suggests that employees are reluctant to return to an office-only workplace.
The future is not just about working from home but the flexibility of work from anywhere and still being as productive, or more so, as you were at a physical office We believe that future developments will not reverse this transformation, they will build on it. Organizations the world over have already begun preparing for a hybrid system of the workplace. This shift will occur as soon as the pandemic becomes less threatening – and considering the mass vaccination drives, this is not a matter of possibility but merely that of time.
Can you tell us how some of your products have reduced the operational challenges of a physical event?
As businesses that once relied on physical meetings and conference rooms for complicated projects and negotiations, switching to a digital workspace was not an easy transformation. For many, the experience of conducting online meetings meant a patchy network, unsecured exchange of information, and noisy backgrounds. Our product GoToMeeting is helping both companies and employees to resolve these issues and conduct safer, securer, and more satisfactory virtual meetings. As a software specially designed for video meetings, GoToMeeting promises advanced features to its clients such as HD video, built-in audio noise suppression, toll-free call feature, mobile conferencing, and one-click meetings. These features can help reduce or eliminate the need for business travel while still allowing employees, customers and partners to meet in a virtual face-to-face setting.
At LogMeIn, we work towards streamlining not only small office meetings but also webinars, town halls, trainings and virtual events . Organizing physical events is both cost- and time-intensive. With GoToWebinar, the transition from a physical stage to an online platform is not just possible but also seamless. With our integrated planning tools businesses can promote their events online, access custom registration forms, webinar templates, and expert planning and support, the need for large labor-force and third-party resource managers is drastically minimized. The software also helps businesses to boost engagement during and after the web event using tools such as engagement dashboard (consisting of polls and surveys), source tracking, and event analytics.
Aside from the productivity benefits, these tools also help organizations accelerate their sustainability goals by eliminating or reducing commutes and business travel.
How can one ensure safety and security concerns given the WFH scenario?
In a remote working scenario, businesses need to be careful about how to facilitate virtual interactions and engagement while ensuring that sensitive, business-critical data is protected against all threats. At the level of the enterprise, businesses should leverage connectivity and communication tools that facilitate fully encrypted and secured interactions to enable a protected remote workforce. This needs to be complemented by a robust password manager software that generates and stores multiple unique passwords for all workers connected to the enterprise network. Enterprises must also look to set up a multi-authentication framework for granting access and permissions to authorized individuals alone. Finally, IT teams must be equipped with a remote diagnostics, management, and repair solution to troubleshoot any issue faced by a remote worker anywhere in the world.
However, a holistic cybersecurity framework is rendered incomplete and, therefore, ineffective unless the remote workers themselves are protected at the individual level to identify and avoid cyberthreats. This is critical because human errors constitute the biggest vulnerability in the face of an increasingly sophisticated threat landscape irrespective of whether an enterprise has a robust cybersecurity infrastructure in place or not. From choosing the same and weak passwords for office accounts to sharing information on an unencrypted platform to using unsecured networks such as public wi-fi, there are several security and safety concerns that enterprises need to consider. The only way to address these challenges is to educate the employees on cybersecurity best practices while incentivsing them to practice good cybersecurity hygiene.
What steps do you think corporations need to take to further strengthen the safety and security model of the organization?
As discussed above, a comprehensive security model of the organization must combine security efforts at both the individual and the organizational levels. Organisations need to now start shifting their focus from perimeter to people based security from the most privileged to securing the most vulnerable in the system as they move forward in the remote work journey.
To further strengthen the safety and security model of the organization, businesses should focus on training their employees on cybersecurity best practices and how to handle privacy and data protection issues. This should be complemented by the implementation of password managers, such as our own LastPass, to help employees avoid reusing passwords for different accounts. Last but not least, businesses need to empower their system admins and IT teams with best-in-class tools and technologies that help in maintaining an effective security posture within their organization.
What is LogMeIn’s roadmap for the Indian market?
We will continue to expand our growing presence in the India market by innovating on our best-in-class collaboration products, like GoToWebinar; remote support and access solutions like Rescue and Central, and password management tool, like LastPass . We had recently also announced the data storage availability for LastPass in India. LogMeIn is differentiated from other companies in that it solves multiple IT needs in the communications & collaboration, remote support, and cybersecurity space. It’s a true differentiator and we look forward to grow in the region through our growing ecosystem of channel partners who are an integral part of our growth strategy