Cyber Attacks Rise During WFH, Cybersecurity Experts Give This Advice

Cybersecurity expert advises companies to avoid RDP cyberattacks (Pixabay)

JAKARTA - Cyber security and digital company Kaspersky shows data that Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) cyber-attack attempts among Kaspersky users in Southeast Asia rose 149% from 2019 to 2021.

Especially when many offices implement a work from home system (Work From Home). In Indonesia, the number of RDP cyberattacks in 2019 was 11.6 million. Then in 2020, it rose to 39.7 million. In the following year amounted to 32.2 million.

From the overall data the number of RDP cyberattacks in Southeast Asia in 2019 reached more than 65 million, and then the number skyrocketed to more than 214 million in 2020. And in 2021, RDP cyberattack attempts fell by 20%.

However, the decline in the number of RDP cyberattacks is not keeping workers safe, Kaspersky experts predict attacks on remote infrastructure (as well as collaboration tools) will not stop anytime soon.

If you use RDP in your current job, Kaspersky security experts recommend taking all possible protection measures, for example:

• Use different strong passwords to access different company resources
• Update all software and applications on employee devices to the latest versions
• Enable access to your network or make sure to open RDP only through the company VPN
• Use Network Level Authentication (NLA)
• When possible, enable multiple authentication factors
• If you are not using RDP, disconnect and close port 3389
• Provide employees with basic security training that can be done online
• Make sure your employees are ready to work from home safely and know who to turn to if they have an IT issue
• Use a reliable enterprise security solution that will be installed on all employees' devices, as well as a solution to track the device if it is lost
• Whenever possible, use encryption on the devices you work with
• Ensure you have access to the latest threat intelligence to enhance your protection solutions
• Make backup copies of important data