With more companies allowing work from home because of the continuing pandemic, employees have grown increasingly reliant on transportable USB drives. According to the 2021 Honeywell Industrial USB Threat Report, cyber threats specifically designed to attack removable media nearly doubled from 19% in 2019 to 39% in 2020. The report also revealed that 79% of USB cyber threats were capable of disrupting operational technology environments, as well as increased threats of being hacked via remote access and malware.
To help thwart USB-related threats to their infrastructure, companies need to establish a clear USB security policy with active cybersecurity controls, according to the report. A few ways companies can protect their USBs from risks include:
- Not plugging unknown USB drives (such as USBs handed out at conferences or conventions) into work computers
- Procuring USB drives from trusted sources
- Encrypting the USB drive or USB files with a password
- Using fingerprint authentication (when available)
For more tips on cyber security, visit our blog or email us at info@vanguardresources.com to learn how Vanguard Resources can assist your company in facility operations and security.
*Information from this article was found from https://www.honeywell.com/us/en/honeywell-forge/cybersecurity/cybersecurity-threat-report-2021
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