How Bitdefender Can Keep Your Remote Workers (and RDP) Safe from Hackers
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The coronavirus pandemic has forever changed many aspects of the world as we knew it. And, while its long-lasting effects remain to be seen, one certainty is that it has transformed the workplace. According to
Gallup, in just three weeks the percentage of people working from home doubled, going from 31% to 62%. And about 55% of managers with remote workers say that they’ll change their remote work policy, with a majority of them allowing employees to work remotely more often even after COVID-19 has been corralled.
In fact, Gallup predicts, more remote work could become “the next normal” for the workplace.
While there are many advantages to remote work, such as allowing workflow to continue (almost) as usual and eliminating commute times for employees, companies that allow telecommuting workers are also facing new challenges. And those challenges go far beyond such things as trying to get everyone on a Zoom call at the same time.
Employees who previously connected to the network at work now are using their own personal equipment and accessing the company’s infrastructure either via a virtual private network (VPN) or a remote desktop protocol (RDP). The problem is, not everyone is using these networks securely.
Calling for Greater Security in the Age of COVID-19
An
analysis performed in March by the specialty computer search engine Shodan confirmed that the number of devices exposing RDP to the Internet via standard ports grew by more than 40% during March as more employees began working remotely.
The jump in VPN usage was also consistent with the move from the workplace to the home office. The number of servers running VPN protocols on different ports showed similar increases.
This created new security concerns for companies, as it immediately established new opportunities for hackers. The work from home movement was public knowledge, giving hackers a window to exploit vulnerabilities before companies had a chance to react.
Even though a VPN or RDP itself might be safe, the rise of a larger remote workforce introduced new risks, which include:
- Workers began using home equipment, which meant that many were using unmanaged routers and printers on personal ISPs.
- A number of home networks were already infected with malware that could be used for an attack.
- The overall security of the hardware being used by the employee may already have been compromised, allowing malicious hackers to gain entry into the network.
While companies responded as quickly and effectively as they could, it has become apparent that the work from home movement isn’t going away anytime soon, and that calls for a long-term solution to protect remote workers and company RDP or VPNs from hackers.
How Bitdefender Protects Remote Workers (and Businesses)
One of the most effective ways to protect companies and their remote workers is through the use of
Bitdefender. The company, which was formed in 2001, has become a leader in delivering award-winning security products and threat intelligence for both business and home use.
Its GravityZone Advanced Business Security was created to avoid breaches and provide both high protection and high performance. It is easy for users to deploy and can be integrated either with a cloud or an on-premise hosted management console, so it provides a versatile solution for all environments.
Some of the key reasons it has become a leading, trusted security option include:
- It consistently protects against all types of threats, ranging from the most common threats to the most sophisticated.
- It offers automated response and actionable insights that allow for remediation without overloading your cyber-security resources.
- It provides proactive hardening and risk analytics, which means it continuously reduces attack surface at both the endpoint and at the network.
Utilizing Machine Learning
One of the reasons Bitdefender has been able to minimize false positives and increase its effectiveness of malware detection is that it uses machine learning techniques. Its well-trained machine models and algorithms are better able to predict and block advanced attacks. These machine learning models use more than 40,000 static and dynamic features and are continuously trained to continue improving their effectiveness.
The modular design of its integrated endpoint security agent allows for maximum flexibility and enables administrators to set their security policies. GravityZone then automatically customizes the installation package and provides a unified security management platform that can protect your environment no matter where it lives: on-site, in a virtualized environment or in the cloud.
It also offers an optional email security add-on that provides multilayered protection for every email in your organization against known, unknown and emerging email threats. This is the first line of defense in preventing large-scale phishing scams, targeted attacks, CEO fraud and malware.
Providing Defense When You Need It Most
While no one has a crystal ball into what will happen in the coming months and years, most business experts agree that
remote working will continue, at least in some form, even after the pandemic is under control. As business leaders adjust to this changing work environment, one of the top concerns will continue to be the question of how to maintain a secure work environment that is now dispersed across so many locations.
Having the correct security for your RDP or VPN is critical in the work from home environment. You need security that can detect threats before they become a problem and can address the most urgent issues immediately. With Bitdefender, you have complete real-time protection and network threat prevention to avoid losing data and confidential information to hackers.
Find out how Bitdefender can improve business productivity while at the same time improving your endpoint security. Call us at 1-855-AVENTIS today to learn more about protecting your remote workers, RDP and overall security.
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