One of the major challenges with losing data or having items stolen is the bad publicity. That’s at the start and then clients start to lose confidence and cancel contracts. Protecting your company’s data is essential if you hold anything about people; names, dates of birth, addresses, other personal or company information. It’s essential to do more than carry a laptop around in a supermarket plastic bag – that was the advice given by one major firm some years ago to ensure staff didn’t look as if they were carrying any valuables.
Most thefts of laptops are opportunistic. There are steps you can take to minimise the risk:
1 - Protect the data
- Ensure data is password protected; ideally encrypted so if the laptop is stolen, no one can hack into it without considerable effort.
2 - Organise a security policy with staff
- Agree where laptops can be left and when, i.e. if in a car they must be in a locked boot and kept out of sight.
- How they should be transported, i.e. in laptop bags, briefcases, large handbags or man bags or indeed plastic carrier bags!
3 - Prepare a plan
- It is also useful to have a plan of what do if it does go wrong and the worst happens.
- Rehearse with your staff what to do if they are confronted by someone wishing to take the laptop by force, you also need to think about their safety.
- Have statements prepared that can be issued to the media, if necessary.
- Have back-up copies of all the information available so that the loss of the laptop does not mean a serious interruption to the business.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment