On this page you will find advice on information security when working remote. Regardsless of whether you are working from home or when travelling.
For many of us, working from home has become part of everyday life as a result of coronavirus. Security levels are often slightly lower at home than at the university. So, when many employees begin working online remotely, the university becomes more vulnerable to cybercriminals.
Therefore, we urge you to consider your routines and behaviour, regardless of where you are working from, so you help maintain a high level of security at the university.
Be careful when using Wi-Fi in airports, cafés or in other public places. There is a risk that sensitive information can be intercepted and misused when working in public places.
Only log on to Wi-Fi that requires a password. When working on Wi-Fi in public places it is a good idea to use VPN. That encrypts the communication between the device you are using and AU's systems.
Delete Wi-Fi from your phone and computer when it is no longer relevant.
If you have been connected to a public network at the airport or in other public places, you should delete it afterwards.
Alle AU-computers (PC and Mac) are updated automatically with the software provided by AU..
If you have an AU smartphone and/or tablet, you must update the operating system and apps yourself.
Who is permitted to participate in the meeting depends on what types of data will be shared at the meeting. Read about AU’s four data classifications.
Open meetings where everyone with a link can participate
It is easy for external participants to hide their identity behind an avatar or fake photo in open online meetings.
When you conduct an open online meeting it is important that you have control over who participates to avoid externals interupting your meeting with e.g. malicious audio, video, chat and/or screen sharing. To have better control over who enters the meeting, you can use a meeting password, the waiting room feature or mandatory registration.
If you do not wish to use these features, you should change your meeting to a webinar. That way, you will automatically get control over who participates with video, audio, chat and screen sharing.
Closed meetings are only possible with a personal invitation
Consider if the participants should use a password to enter the meeting.
When you participate in an online meeting and have to give a presentation, take care that you do not reveal more than you intend.
Sharing a screen, program or presentation can sometimes mean that other participants see your notes and other internal information. When you share your screen, close all other unnecessary programs and avoid showing your desktop, so that only the presentation, photo or document is shown to all participants. This will help you keep check of what the other participants can see.
When you are working from cafés, hotels, trains and busses, anyone can listen in. This increases the risk of unauthorised persons gaining access to confidential information about products, data, colleagues and partners. This applies to both digital and physical meetings. This may also apply when working from home.
Use headphones so that unauthorised listeners can only hear one part of the interview. This will help to protect your conversation partners and their information.
It is easy to leak internal, confidential and sensitive data if you post photos or video material from your place of work on social media. Therefore, be particularly careful with work-related tasks and information you share on social media. Avoid photos of screens, communication equipment, notes and documents.
Many people are not aware that the information they send via messaging services, especially ordinary text messages, is sent in clear text. This means that the messages are not protected and can be read by others if they are intercepted. Therefore, consider whether your message needs to be protected and, if so, use an encrypted message service instead.
IT security is in order when it comes to the systems and software provided by AU.
If you have needs beyond what AU makes available, please contact your local IT support team before downloading any new apps.
This will help IT support and AU IT ensure that the basic IT security is in order and that the procurement rules have been complied with.
Do you use printed documents, USB flash drives or other material, and do you store documents and media from home or when you are on the move? Then consider whether the information is internal, sensitive or confidential, and whether it should be withheld from others.
Always use screen lock, no matter where you are, so that unauthorised persons do not get access to AU data.
Do not throw away AU documents with internal, sensitive and/or confidential information or data in your own bin or in a shared bin. Get an approved shredder for your home office or bring the documents to AU and shred them there.
Also make sure that AU documents are not lying around so they can be seen by visitors or passers-by.
Employees and students should make sure they are aware of IT security – also when travelling.
The Centre for Cyber Security (CFCS) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark have prepared guidelines/publications and advice on IT security when travelling.