6 Best Tips and Practices to Enhance the Security of Your Remote Work

These are trying times. As almost everyone is working from home, it is imperative to take special care of your laptop. Your laptop is your primary tool to execute all your work-related tasks effectively and communicate with your team members and leads.

And, you don’t have access to IT or Infra teams anymore who can fix your laptop if there are any issues.

Moreover, technological issues should not be cited as a reason for not meeting deadlines or incomplete work on your part. For the organization to work seamlessly, each of us must do our part, and hence it is really important that the laptops are functioning properly.

Mentioned below are 7 tips to achieve that goal.

1)  Create a screensaver password for your computer

• To ensure privacy and protection of your work, a screensaver password for your laptop is essential. Therefore, even in your absence (when you are taking a much-needed break) your files and documents cannot be accessed by family members. This also prevents the inadvertent closure or deletion of an important webpage or document that you were working on
• Here is how to set this up for Windows and for Mac

2)  Back up your work regularly

• This is a non-negotiable measure you must undertake as it prepares you for any unforeseen circumstances and ensures you do not lose your work
• There are a number of ways you can back up of your work
  • Save it on the cloud – google docs, one drive or email it to yourself
  • Create Offline Backups – take hard copy- printouts (not great for the environment though); Save on memory sticks or hard drives
  • Use Connected devices – such that you can access your work from your phone or iPad

3) Keep your software and system up to date

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• Just like people, laptops need rest and recovery! Make sure you turn off your laptop occasionally to it can update and reset
• Modern browsers such as Chrome and Firefox have auto-update enabled by default, but you still need to restart them from time to time
• Make sure to turn on auto-update for your operating system! Windows 10 does this by default, but here is how to do it for macOS

4) Declutter – Clear out your unwanted files

• Deleting unwanted files, unwanted apps, and emptying the recycling bin is some of the simplest ways to avoid overloading your laptop
• Decluttering your laptop will also allow the computer memory space to be utilized efficiently – for example, space for helpful learning software
• Certain useful apps to organize and structure one’s thoughts are OneNote, Trello, Focus Keeper. If you have dyslexia you can download assistive technology such as ClaroRead or Read&Write Gold as well

5) Download an antivirus software

• When working from home, you are often using the same laptop for work and personal use such as downloading or streaming movies et cetera. This means your laptop can be vulnerable to malware and viruses
• A legitimate and safe antivirus software should be downloaded to protect your laptop
• Lots of antivirus software can be downloaded for free, such as AVG. Here is a full list of ones you could use 

6) Store the laptop carefully

• Do not keep any liquids, beverages on the same surface as your laptop
• If you have a laptop case, put your laptop inside it when it’s not in use. This will prevent any damage caused by accidental drink spillages (in case you did not follow the first point), dust, and sudden impacts
• Remove the charger from the laptop when not in use
• If you have children (especially toddlers) or pets in your home, make sure to keep your laptop in a secure location where they cannot reach it

Finally, always have an emergency plan for extenuating circumstances. For example, if your laptop crashes or breaks – is there an old laptop (which belongs to a family member or friend) in the house you can use? Do you have laptop insurance to get a new one? Do you have an iPad or a tablet that you can work on?

Hopefully, this checklist will prove useful and keeps the work done on your laptop safe.

Meanwhile, checkout Qandle‘s all new Remote Tool Kit to improve productivity while you work from home.