The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the local cybersecurity landscape as thousands of people who had been working in office settings are now working from home. Securing the traditional office environment is an ongoing challenge, but securing many different home environments is another hurdle altogether.

The cybersecurity protection available within the work environment might not be the same in individual homes. Other top concerns include:

>> Is the connection secured?

>> Are the devices up to date and patched?

>> What happens during a data or network compromise or if a service is down?

>> How can we continue to protect our workforce and data?

Fortunately, secured connections can be deployed relatively easily through remote-access solutions for businesses, and your information technology team or consultant should ensure that all business- owned devices are kept updated and patched as a best practice. Other questions might be harder to answer and should be considered. It’s important for your workforce to know what to do, who to reach out to or how to report a cybersecurity incident or issue that might affect your business.

Another challenge that has emerged from this pandemic is increased activity from hackers. Hackers use the panic and people’s emotions to their advantage to spread misinformation or trick people into giving them money. This puts more stress on an already stressful situation, so it’s important to think about protecting yourself and your assets whenever you’re online.

With a new environment and a more active enemy, the cybersecurity workforce is definitely feeling the pressure to help protect businesses, data and people. Cybersecurity professionals, especially here in Hawaii, are meeting these challenges head-on and working around the clock to protect people and their data and to keep the community informed.

One of the best defenses against being compromised or hacked is to keep informed through reliable resources. There are many very good resources created by the government, companies and local nonprofits and professionals that offer useful information.

CyberHawaii, an information-sharing and analysis nonprofit and affiliate of the national CyberUSA, has the website cyberhawaii.org, where you can find reports and briefs about recent cybersecurity incidents, tips for best practices and guidance on what to do if your data or network have been compromised.

The state Office of Enterprise Technology Services offers a wealth of information and resources on its website, 808ne.ws/2AfJkRi.

Hawaiian Telcom offers a Technology Blog at 808ne.ws/3dPLxkY that includes previous Tech View columns on a range of security topics and other resources from our in-house experts.

Thanks to our Hawaii cybersecurity experts, there’s a lot of great, reliable and locally produced content available to help everyone stay informed and educated on how to prevent cybersecurity mishaps. Stay informed and stay safe.

Robert Kuakini is a security engineer at CBTS/Hawaiian Telcom. Reach him at robert.kuakini@cbts.com.