Theft of restricted data and cyber attacks prove all too prevalent in call centers, and eliminating these growing potential threats to your data’s security requires multiple safety measures. From changing physical policies for employees to heightening digital protections, the following security measures will increase your chances of protecting your data.
Restricted Access
Help ensure your data safety by implementing restricted access to work areas. Requiring entry via access code, access card or key and restricting who is allowed in certain work areas helps minimize the potential for individuals to physically access your systems and potentially gain access to customer data. Training your employees to never allow any unauthorized co-workers or other people into the restricted work areas will help in preventing people from ending up in sensitive areas where they do not belong.
Restricted access also allows you to monitor and screen employees that may or may not acquire access to confidential data. By employing these physical barriers and monitoring procedures, you can add additional protection for not only your business, but your customers.
Ban Use of Portable Electronic Devices
Ban laptops, disks/CDs, USB storage drives and other devices that can potentially store restricted data. As these devices are difficult to secure physically, you should not store any customer data on these devices unless absolutely needed to transfer information from computer to computer internally. Copies of your data or other sensitive information on these devices can easily be misplaced, and given the small size of thumb drives and portable flash storage disks, they are extremely vulnerable to theft or loss.
Similarly, you should forbid cellphone or smartphone use in your call center to help reduce your risks. Eliminate phone use on your call floor helps remove some of the risks of having your customers’ data being captured in a picture or copied down via text. While some may balk at these kinds of restrictions, properly explaining the reasoning behind the decision should impress upon your staff that you take your data security seriously.
VPN
Securing your computer’s Internet connection to guarantee all of the data you send and receive is encrypted and secured from prying eyes, a virtual private network (VPN) is a great way to bolster your security and provide more protected access to resources on a network you are not physically connected to. The best VPNs combine great pricing with superior security features and privacy guarantees that make them worth your trust. When considering VPN service providers, look for one does not keep logs or restrict access based on location, offers multiple server locations in areas or countries where you expect to need secure access, and that doesn’t discriminate against traffic or protocol types. LifeHacker offers more tips in its full article on VPNs.
Password Protections
Protecting your data with password protections is an obvious step in your security, but you can increase your passwords’ strength by requiring complicated, intricate passwords that are difficult to guess. Using different passwords for different sets of data and requiring each employee to have their own unique set of login credentials also helps to prevent unwanted sharing of credentials. You can also consider setting your individual computer to auto-lock when left unattended for a certain amount of time, requiring a password upon reentry. You can also further encrypt your data by using a password that is easy for you to remember, but impossible for others to guess, like a short phrase or sentence.
Prevent Cyber Crime
Although mandated secure passwords are an important step in preventing cyber attacks, other methods exist as well. For example, two-factor authentication, which requires that you enter a PIN code that is sent to a mobile device in addition to a password, can provide added security. You can also work to implement companywide security policies to minimize weaknesses. These include encrypting company data and communications using secure algorithms, which forces would-be hackers to go through an extra layer of protection to retrieve any information. In addition, making sure that you have malware, spyware and firewall software programs and that you keep their subscriptions up to date and run them regularly can help identify, stop and eliminate threats.
With so much discussion in recent months around data security and protection, especially in light of several high-profile hacking and data theft cases, making sure that you are proactive about your data security is key. At CSS, we can help by finding you highly qualified, vetted and screened candidates for your business, using our years of experience to bring you only trusted and verified prospects for your operation. Contact us today and find out more about how we can help you with your staffing needs.