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The second Canon ‘Frontiers of Innovation Forum 2020’online webinar titled ‘Cyber Security at Home’ provided viewers with practical tips on protecting employees and families when working remotely.

Cyber security is now one of the most pressing corporate issues. The shift to working from home and workers logging on from less-secure domestic networks has given a ‘green light’ to hackers – and more ‘phishing emails’ areexploiting consumers’ health and economic fears during the crisis.

In line with Frontier’s knowledge sharing focus, Quentyn Taylor, Director of Information Security for Canon EMEA, outlinedon Canon EMEA’s LinkedIn page (https://www.linkedin.com/company/canon-emea/)how threats have been with us throughout history – only today’s online attacks are constant and increasingly sophisticated.

Last year’s Hiscox Cyber Readiness Reportfound 61% of European and US businesses reported a cyber security attack last year, compared to 45% from the previous year. “There are two types of companies – those that have been hacked, and those that don’t know they’ve been hacked,” he warned.

Throughout the one-hour webinar, Taylor underlined the importance of sticking to the basics. Avoid open networks, usestrong and unique passwords – that aren’t easily repeated across devices – and keep clear boundaries between work and leisure. “The phrase ‘family computer’ always worries me,” he said. “I would definitely have a separate machine for work and home, and treat your home printer like any other computer – if it’s connected to the internet, it’s vulnerable to a cyber-attack.”

Other safety measures include making sure you back up critical data and ensuring your browser and PC networks match. He recommended www.haveibeenpwned.com and www.nomoreransom.org which can let you know if your account has been hacked and provide online protection tips.

Working from home provides different dynamics, with family members living in separate rooms but often accessing devices on shared networks. “If you have a child, take interest in what they’re watching online, and beware of online shopping and holiday scams. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”

Taylor advised corporates to build resilience into their critical IT infrastructure and connected networks. “For many people, working from home will be ‘the new normal’ and we need to understand how we’re going to cope with that. From an IT perspective, if you do get malware going through your company, how do you swap out all the laptops?”

The next discussion on ‘Agile Workforce’will be held on Wednesday July 1st (18:00 GST). Tune in to Canon EMEA’s LinkedIn page (https://www.linkedin.com/company/canon-emea/).The forum is moderated by Etithne Treanor, Founder & CEO, E Treanor Media.