Welcome back to our series on Security Insights.
Today, we're going to talk about the unintended consequences of using equipment that's designed
for the home, in the office.
As the lines between home working and office working are becoming increasingly blurred,
how do you ensure that your data is always protected?
What is the difference between the security needs of the home, and the needs of a corporate
worker, working from home?
Is there a difference between technology designed for the home versus the workplace?
I don't believe it's necessarily wrong to mix and match your technology.
Many devices designed for home use do have more friendly and usable interfaces than those
designed for corporate use.
But, just because it feels as normal to use your tablet in your kitchen as it does in
your office doesn't mean to say there are not potential risks.
Whether you're using a corporate device at home, or running a small business from your
bedroom, you really need to care about security.
It's amazing how many people don't realise that attackers will look at your network to
see whether you're a home user, or a business user at home.
Why?
Because a home user might not care too much if an attacker blocks access to some personal
photos or messages.
But a business user will care if they're suddenly blocked from their important files.
And they'll care a lot, enough to pay to regain access.
Home devices are designed with a single user in mind.
They often do not have facilities for managing multiple devices in the same way.
Developers of corporate devices have management platforms to enable mass configuration,
mass patching, and single security policies.
This means that when a home device is used in a corporate setting, the aspects of management,
updates, and security policies often have to be carried out manually, if at all.
If the device is not updated or managed, they're a risk, and this puts the companies data at risk.
The problem with some home technology is that the terms and conditions of their usage is
quite different, and quite a lot looser than corporate technology.
To put it more bluntly, if the terms and conditions of your devices are made with home
users in mind, the onus is on you to understand where your data is being stored,
and if it's safe.
The company providing the services are likely to reserve the right to use your data
as it wants to.
The little extras that corporate technology users enjoy, like transferable licences,
and protection of intellectual property, come at a large cost.
Why?
With corporate contracts the negotiating power is significantly higher.
The IT team looking into the back-end of the technology are aware of what needs to be covered,
and terms and conditions from a business perspective are significantly tighter.
Now I'm not saying "don't" but I am saying "be careful".
If you're going to use equipment or services designed for home usage,
think about how you're using it: Where your data is, and what your contract covers.
Home IT technology often doesn't comply to the same security standards that corporate
technology does.
Far too often we see products designed for home usage
containing very simple security flaws.
It's not uncommon to see exactly the same product re-badged with different manufacturer
names, different packaging, and different functionality,
but exactly the same security vulnerabilities.
It's amazing that underneath some products may be virtually identical, just re-purposed
and re-badged for different tasks.
At the cheaper end of the market, this can be endemic, and if manufacturers don't care
about this, how much do they care about your security and the safety of your data?
So if you're a home technology user, you should care about the quality of the product you're
putting your data into.
So how do you tackle all of these things?
The biggest difference between home and office technology, ultimately, is who is responsible
for it.
If you work in an office, the security credentials of a product are probably not your responsibility.
You'll have either an IT team or a security team to think about that for you.
At home however the responsibility rests with you.
Buy products from vendors that talk about security.
Don't just buy on price.
Don't even buy on reviews.
Buy on recommendations from trusted providers.
Buy on your own research.
If a product has had a lot of security breaches or warnings attached to it, maybe think twice
about spending your money.
No matter how flashy the technology is, when you're at home, the only person caring about
the security and safety of your data is you.
I'm Quentyn Taylor and I hope you've enjoyed this video on using corporate devices at home.
Please don't forget to like and subscribe.