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Making the Case for Secure Communications in the Hybrid Workplace

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Communication runs the modern world. From video conferencing to text channels, employees are constantly sharing data with each other to perform their job responsibilities.

However, secure communications can often be lacking from UCaaS providers. Perhaps their data centers aren’t redundant, or they simply don’t offer the right levels of encryption. Either way, your business cannot thrive with communications that are not secured.

The matter is further complicated by the rise of hybrid workplaces. The amount of people working remotely has never been higher, and all of that remotely transmitted data must be secure.

Today, we’re going to make the case for prioritizing security in communications. We’ll discuss the impact of hybrid workplaces, go over crime statistics, and then showcase which security features are required.

Hybrid Workplaces Require Enhanced Security

Hybrid workplaces are quickly becoming the new norm. This change has presented organizations of all sizes with plenty of challenges, one of which being how to ensure secure communications with an increasingly remote workforce. Businesses must embrace UCaaS solutions that prioritize and guarantee security, rather than one that simply works.

According to RiskIQ, a research organization, cybercrime costs businesses a collective $2.9 million every minute, with major businesses losing $25 per minute due to data breaches. Focusing on cybersecurity can help reduce or eliminate data breaches that cost your company serious cash. Considering that 86% of data breaches in 2020 were financially motivated, it pays to invest in security.

Embracing a UCaaS solution that provides the right security suite will go a long way in reducing data breaches and the costs associated with them. Furthermore, employees should receive training on social engineering and phishing attempts that target them directly. Effective training combined with a quality UCaaS provider will help ensure the security of your organization’s data.

Top Cybersecurity Must-Haves from UCaaS Providers

There are plenty of UCaaS providers to choose from. How do you know which ones will protect your company’s data? Carefully examining the features and technical specifications of prospective providers will help executives decide on the right provider.

Below are some of the top must-haves from any UCaaS provider that’s worth doing business with. If a provider does not offer the following features for secure communications, they might not be the right choice for you.

Whichever mode of communication is being used, the data should become an unusable garbled mess if it is intercepted by a third party during transmission.

Global Secure Data Centers

The data centers powering a UCaaS solution should have the best security possible, both digitally and physically. They should have multi-factor authentication (MFA) for administrators to prevent unauthorized access, along with redundant power systems to protect against outages.

Beyond providing the utmost security in each data center, there should be multiple data centers located around the world. Scattered locations help ensure that services remain active should an entire region become unavailable due to natural disasters or other disruptions. Even during normal operations, multiple data centers help reduce latency for remote employees that may be located anywhere.

Complete Encryption of All Data

Data is the lifeblood of your organization. It flows from department to department, and from person to person. At every step in any piece of data’s journey, it should be encrypted. VoIP calls, video conferencing, screen shares, and text chat should all be encrypted from endpoint to endpoint.

When it comes to VoIP, an ideal provider will use both transport layer security (TLS) and secure real-time transport protocol (SRTP) to help ensure that voice calls receive just as much security as text.

User Access Controls

Every user that is accessing the UCaaS solution should have the appropriate level of access and nothing higher. No employee, even the CEO, should have access to features or data that they do not need.

It’s important that the chosen UCaaS solution has robust user access controls that empower IT to quickly alter permissions as needed, including suspending users quickly if there is suspicious activity. Furthermore, if an employee leaves the company, their access levels should be suspended immediately.

To save time, the UCaaS provider should allow companies to create profiles with pre-set access levels that can be quickly applied to new employees within that role. Without this capability, IT will spend entirely too much time hand-selecting permissions when setting up new users.

Fraudulent Activity Tracking

Social engineering is increasingly prevalent. This type of cyber attack calls for manipulating an employee into giving up sensitive information, which is often related to their login credentials. Since most of these attacks take place over voice services, some have started calling these attacks “voice phishing.”

Just like with standard phishing, employees should receive robust training on how to identify, avoid, and report any suspected social engineering attempt. An ideal UCaaS provider will give their customers the abilities they need to investigate fraudulent activity.

Complete Compliance with Regulations

Depending on the country, region, and industry, your business might have specific rules and regulations that must be adhered to. A common example of this is GDPR and CCPA. It’s reasonable to expect that even more privacy and data storage regulations will be passed all around the world.

Your organization needs a UCaaS solution that is able to grow and evolve with any new regulations that might come out. For industries that already have them, organizations should be able to easily provide all required information to show that they are in compliance.

If your organization requires a specific type of compliance, make sure that you ask the UCaaS vendor if they can guarantee your compliance. If they cannot, it might be worth moving on to a new UCaaS solution.

Is Your Communications Data Secure?

Hybrid workplaces are quickly becoming the new standard, meaning more people around the world will be sharing data remotely.

Organizations must prepare by choosing a UCaaS provider that can guarantee that all of their data is secured. Otherwise, the organization is at risk of having a security breach, which will result in financial loss, potential reputation damage, and so much more.

Securing your organization’s communication data is of the utmost importance. Do you have secure communications? Reach out to a secure communications expert today to see how our private label VoIP softphone can increase your organization’s security.

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