Working from a home office has a lot of perks, but if you don’t set up your technology correctly or follow certain safety protocols, you risk annoying, expensive, or even disastrous consequences. Here are some of the most common tech fails that occur in home offices – and what you can do to avoid them.
1. Not backing up
Set up frequent, regularly scheduled automated backups for your data, so you don’t have to remember to do it manually. This is especially important if you run a small business or are a solo entrepreneur with no IT department to handle this issue. A crashed website, lost client files, missing financial records, etc. can harm and even destroy your reputation and possible your career. There are a wide variety of backup options available to fit every size of business and every budget out there.
2. Backing up to only one place
If you’ve set up a backup system for your data – great! Now you need to take it one step further. Technology doesn’t always do exactly as it should, and human error is always a factor to deal with, so having more than one backup system is a good way to really make sure your data is safe. If you have a cloud-system backup, try investing in a physical external hard drive that you can also program to automatically backup your systems.
3. Slacking on security
You may think a small home office will stay under the radar when it comes to online criminals, but you’d be wrong. Be sure to install anti-virus software on each computer and tablet you use in your home office. Make sure the software is up-to-date, perform regular scans, and remove malicious programs immediately.
It’s also important to practice safe computing. E-mail and social networking accounts are particularly vulnerable to viruses and spam, so make it a habit to use different passwords for different accounts.
Also, stop and think before you click on anything in an email. Do not download attachments or click on links unless you were expecting them or have verified they are legitimate, no matter how harmless they may seem. For more information about how phishing can affect home offices, and what to do to avoid this devious practice, read “Understanding Email Phishing – and How to Outsmart It.”
4. Lazy password behavior
It’s tempting to use the same password for a lot of the websites you use, we know. But don’t do it! Passwords should contain a mixture of upper- and lower-case letters, as well as numbers and symbols for maximum security. The most important place to NOT re-use passwords is for any online banking or financial sites. Be sure to use unique ones for each site. If the thought of remembering all those different passwords gets overwhelming, we recommend looking into using a reputable password management service like LastPass to store passwords and support your security online.
5. Inferior internet connections
In today’s working world, no matter where you work, high-speed internet is essential. Choose a local internet provider that offers secure, reliable, and high-speed internet. Even if you live in a rural community, advancing technology has made it possible for people in remote locations to enjoy the same high-speed connectivity as their urban neighbors. That means you can upload videos, participate in conference calls, lead a webinar and hold a Facebook chat, right from your home office.
If you have questions about your home office setup, technical issues, or want to learn how to improve the speed and security of your internet connections, give us a call. Here at Softcom, we provide high-speed internet access throughout Sacramento and San Joaquin Counties. For questions or to see if we can help improve your home office experience, call at (800) 982-7675. We’re here to help.