Cyber Security Audit | Home Office Base

Cyber security audit helps in identifying all the security risks and vulnerabilities you might be susceptible to. So, whether you are planning to work full time or part time, it is important to set up a cyber security audit for your home office. This is a standard to protect your home office from viruses, malware, hacking or even data loss.

What is a cyber security audit for your home? Cyber security audit is a structured and extensive approach in protecting your security system’s integrity and confidentiality against possible attacks from hackers, viruses, theft, or even natural disasters which may jeopardize your business.

It aims to defend your home office’s computers, servers, networks, e-systems, and data that could be compromised if someone hacks into your home Wi-Fi network or even the public hotspot you’re connected to. Take note that other devices connected in your home may have far fewer security controls than your work laptop. This may give easy access to cyber criminals or opportunistic malware that are ready to pounce on your highly confidential documents at any time of the day!

Cyber security

Cyber security is the combination of technologies, practices, and processes planned to protect computers, programs, networks, data and information from attack, damage or unauthorized access. Most of these threats are viruses, worms, malicious malware, theft, phishing, DDoS, password attacks, etc.

These may result in system crash or worse, confidential data loss. Good thing, we can safeguard our network system by investing in good antivirus apps, online backup, encryption for email protection and two-factor authentication. However, these cannot be done in one sitting and it requires the outsourced competence of a cyber auditor. You hire audit professionals primarily to look into the scope of risk, evaluate your network performance and come up with methods to save your office network security from further damage.

Why Cyber security audits

Aside from the in-depth security it provides, cyber security audit directs your home office towards increased productivity, stops your website from crashing, and protects not only you but also your clients.

The cyber security audit is also known as electronic information security or information technology security. As the term implies, it ensures the following: threat-free devices and software, both in storage and in transit integrity and data privacy are protected, and restoration of operations or data loss brought about by human and nonhuman intervention.

To understand how cyber security audits for your home works, we have to understand its importance, protective measures, set up process, people to trust and frequency of having security audits for home offices.

Setting up Cyber security for your home office

There are a lot of software available that comes in handy in the absence of a network auditor. The choices are varied that you won’t be at a loss finding the one that suits your security audit needs. Despite the expense, time, frustration over data infringement and other vulnerabilities, it’s advisable to carry out a vast network audit periodically. For home offices, twice a year would suffice to detect threats and free your system from the biggest fragility that may affect not only you but your clientele as well.

As you build your home office, do not take for granted the importance of regular cyber security audits. The budget may always be the first drawback to this but look beyond the bucks you need to spend. The money you think you can save from brushing off the idea of network audit may even double or triple once it’s too late for a simple cyber security check.

Bank on updated cyber security audit and do your due diligence in protecting personal data, save yourself from inconceivable network security problems, avoid an expensive data breach, strengthen office programs, flag potential issues and suggest improvements. Even though cyber attacks and threats will never disappear, it doesn’t mean you have to live your life in fear. There are successful procedures and trusted software to keep the integrity of your data. By understanding the vulnerabilities and threats your home office is facing, you can improve your ability to combat them. Remember, ‘An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.’ Conduct audits either through scheduled scanning or by a skilled professional who knows the ins and outs of effective audits that will keep your home company running and aimed towards the right direction.

Importance of Cyber security audit for your home

Technical Security

It covers network, application, information, and operational safety. With this big scope, it’s essential to establish set standards for security configuration which is important in dealing with file storage and backup. Some home offices have this customized to direct particular issues.

Physical security

This emerges from theft, burglary, fire, and natural disasters like floods. Most home offices overlooked this one, but the probability of its occurrence cannot be dismissed. A course of action includes locks, fencing, access control cards, fire suppression systems, and biometric control systems.

Ethical hacking

This is the process of validating and testing potential threats on a network or computer. We also call this penetration testing and information security analysis. So, to prevent misused and stolen data by cyber attackers, a secure network should be implemented to avert security violations.

Virus protection and removal

The most basic protection you can give your home office is the anti-virus software. Up up-to-date software is important to ensure your system is protected. It’s imperative to say that you have to invest in sophisticated anti-virus apps to save you from tons of worries should viruses and malware get to your home office system.

Safeguarding your home office from digital and physical threats

Anti-virus software is an essential step to make sure the computer network is protected from viruses and malware. A periodic update should be run to be current to the new and recent viruses that are developed every day. Also, this saves you from the risk of losing your data and starting anew after reinstalling your operating system.
A backup plan saves the day when all our data is beyond recovery due to all the cyber threats that abound. Having an online backup plan can prevent suspension of your business operations and redoing all your system files. Remember that you are risking yourself from a significant amount of data loss if there’s no online backup plan.
Email encryption involves encryption to protect the content of your email from being read by others before it reaches the receiver. Typically, emails have confidential and sensitive content, so it’s alarming to know that email is not as secure as we thought it was. Imagine this: with encrypted email, what you are sending will only be visible to you and the intended recipient. You can sleep soundly knowing your data cannot be easily stolen by all forms of online entities.
Two- factor authentication is like an extra layer of security that allows you to log into service as long as you have another device, mostly a mobile phone, where you can receive a login code sent once you put in your password. With this, always take extra effort and precaution in building a very strong password that includes upper and lower case as well as number. Do not fall into the habit of writing your ‘password’ on a sticky note or anywhere accessible by anyone but you (or your most trusted people in your home).

Step by step processes in setting up cyber security audit for your home office

Define the scope of the audit. As you have your office set at home, you should be well-aware of the extent of security you need. Surely with all the potential threats around, the scope is not limited to computer equipment, but it also includes sensitive data and essential documentation. You should base your audit of scope on risks at hand.
Define threats. What could be the most emerging threats in a home office? Online threats are diverse, and they don’t discriminate when looking for a target. Surprisingly, there are as many as office-based businesses have, such as the following:
- Spyware and viruses that damage files or systems.
- Stolen passwords that risk the confidentiality of your data and files. So, make sure the passwords of your devices are unique and never share it with anyone.
- Theft of valuable or sensitive data that can disable the system or worse, make your data unavailable.
- Phishing is carried out via email that misleads email recipients into exposing confidential data or even passwords.
Evaluate the latest security performance. Have a grasp of your system’s security program and understand the top-level risks needed to enhance cyber security administration. Know how your home office is performing against your adopted monitoring device and take it from there.
Devise ways to improve or implement processes.This simply means keeping all your systems and programs updated and current. Make it a habit to have all your internal and external systems up to date to neutralize or eliminate risks.

Who sets up cyber security audit for your home office

Hire computer security auditors.

They are skilled professionals who will help you big time in assessing your databases and corroborate that all your devices are safe from cyber criminals and threats. As cyber threats grow in number and by the hour, so is the demand for cyber security experts! For your home office, you can outsource them. Though there is scarcity in resources, you can always find the right person, if not the best, on job searches websites, professional social network websites like LinkedIn, universities that have a pool of qualified and available workforce, public events that allow recruiters to meet with potential employees in person, and even in training courses. The last one may sound improbable, but come to think of it, most professionals continuously train to polish their auditing skills and attract better opportunities, so what are the odds for you to stumble upon someone who could help you out in setting security audit for your home office?

Once you find the right person for the job, you can always call someone to come by and assess the overall structure of your system. The auditor should be able to interpret the resulting data. Then, security issues and a quick fix should be looked upon and itemized. This trained professional will ensure the updated and threat-free system for you.

Find software that can audit vulnerabilities through the internet.

All types of businesses need a measure to find heaps of unknown network-related hazards. In doing so, you should find software that can audit vulnerabilities through the internet. I have listed down ten of the tools to scan your websites.

Sucuri is the top website security company in the world that specializes in powerful WordPress security. Your website is protected from hackers, malware, DDoS and blacklists.
SQLMap is a powerful automated engine for detecting SQL (Structured Query Language) Injection vulnerabilities and database takeover. When given a URL, it automatically executes a thorough SQL injection scan and, if possible, extracts the entirety of database details and DB user details.
Qualys is a platform for scanning and reporting vulnerabilities and missing patches from the network infrastructure. It is user-friendly, easy to configure, capable of automatically running scans on a schedule or new patch release.
Zed Attack Proxy (ZAP) is a free tool good for small businesses. Automatic scanning after a manual walk through is its most valuable feature. Since it is open-source, it provides flexibility and is convenient to use.
UpGuard is a fine tool that goes well in rating the organization’s security posture not only to the services that are externally faced but also to the internal systems. It also allows quick identification of vulnerabilities and recommended configurations to make your systems more secure.
WebCookies Scanner is an all-in-one free safety device capable of finding risks and privacy issues on HTTP cookies, Flash applets, HTML5 localStorage, Supercookies, and Evercookies and suitable for scanning web applications. This tool also provides a free URL malware scanner.
Nessus is a penetration tester that scans comprehensively, and its vulnerability database is constantly updated. It does not only allow you to detect vulnerabilities that affect your system but also allows you to discover your network, through which you can validate if there are unauthorized devices found connected to it.
Probe.ly performs continuous security in the early stages of your web development and quickly fixes vulnerabilities. Scheduling and managing scans are simple, proactive in addressing problems and easy to use which saves hours and grief.
Quttera features a one-click scan, cloud technology, detailed investigation report, blacklist status, external links detection, unknown malware detection, etc. This plugin will scan your website for malware, trojans, worms, viruses, shells, spyware and other threats, malicious iframes and more.
SiteGuarding offers services on any small or large website problems. It is affordable software that checks and resolves suspicious activity on your system, deep scans every file on your website, virus database daily update, and hacker exploits.

There are several dozens more security software that can help you manage any cyber threats and attacks your home office will be exposed to. It’s quite complicated what these systems can provide for you, but I’m sure you can find one that’s the most suitable in addressing your security audits for the home office.

How regular should cyber security audit be done

A security audit is a complicated, tedious, extensive analysis of data that requires solutions over time. You cannot just guess the security of your systems sans implementing regular thorough security audits. Needless to say, such measures require a lot of time and money.

So, the question is: How often should cyber security audits be done?

Some home offices might choose to perform them monthly, quarterly or bi-annually. Though some would agree it could be done at a minimum of twice a year. There’s no standard frequency in conducting security audit as it depends on the following factors:

Budget set aside for cyber security and protection software. The steps taken into consideration are long and time-consuming, so imagine the amount of money needed to gather and analyze data or potential entries for attackers. And it does not just end there, software and network patches need to be performed to fortify your system.
The size of your business is the underlying factor here. Big businesses require more frequent security audits like monthly or quarterly for non-physical transactions, but smaller businesses can perform it twice a year (bear minimum).

To play safe, do not wait until something goes wrong in your system or cyber attackers have sabotaged the confidentiality of your files tremendously. Perform security audits as often as possible. As the old cliché goes, “It’s better to be safe than sorry”.

Cyber Security Audit for your Home Office