Two in five companies in India that enabled remote working by providing laptops to employees compromised on security

• Most organisations delivered desktops at doorsteps, adopted file sharing, video conferencing platforms and also facilitated internet reimbursements, as India went into lockdown.
  
• But, over 40% of them did not ensure data and network security.
  
• They provided laptops and desktops without configuring VPN (Virtual Private Network).
  
• Vishalli Dongrie, Head, People & Change at KPMG India believes that the companies now need to introduce new operating and governance models for business continuity.

India announced complete lockdown on March 25 and the entire workforce moved to online setup overnight. It’s been over a month now and the organisations as well as employees are embracing the new normal.

However, according to KPMG’s HR practices survey report, two in five companies in India provided laptops and desktops without configuring VPN (Virtual Private Network). This includes manufacturing, advisory and IT firms.

Most organisations delivered desktops at doorsteps, adopted file sharing, video conferencing platforms and also facilitated internet reimbursements to ascertain smooth functioning. But, over 40% of them missed out on secured connections.

This has posed security threats for a lot of companies. Organisations are now worried about the mission critical operations and processes to safeguard against future disruptions such as cyber-attacks or biological attacks, Vishwesh Padmanabhan, digital consulting head at KPMG in India told Business Insider.

Going further, the security concerns will become a priority as most companies will look to enable its workforce to become ‘work from home’ ready, even after the situation normalises.

Vishalli Dongrie, Head, People & Change at KPMG India believes that the companies now need to introduce new operating and governance models for business continuity. “With most organizations now moving to a new normal of working which is more liquid and flexible in nature, there is a need for strategies and new operating and governance models for workforce management. Enabling areas such as transformative policy frameworks, strong technology infrastructure, these interventions are the need of the hour and will help organizations to re-invent themselves to succeed in the present and in the future,” she said.

On the employee front too, remote working has raised concerns on personal data security. For instance, the security concerns with regard to using Zoom video conferencing platform. According to a report by the Department of Homeland Security’s Cyber Mission and Counterintelligence Mission centers, the platform might be vulnerable to intrusions and cyber threat.

In fact, a third of professionals using Zoom are afraid that their information may be compromised and a few of them have stopped using it altogether, as per a report by Blind.

See also:
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Goldman Sachs, Reliance, Samsung and others onboarding interns virtually during the lockdown