Lunch meeting? In-person seminar? Conference room gathering? You probably still do these things occasionally, but meetings, events, and conferences are more likely to happen via video conferencing these days. The world is connected online, and we want to take advantage of expert advice from across the globe. We aren’t limited by geography and time anymore now that we can turn on a camera and press record.
What makes video conferencing so popular? It enables remote collaboration, reduces travel costs, and enhances communication. Cybersecurity should be your foremost concern when selecting a video conferencing platform for your organization. Sensitive information is exchanged during virtual meetings, and breaches can have severe consequences.
Whether you’re in charge of developing e-conference solutions at work, or setting up video calls at home, you should consider the following key security features in your chosen software:
End-to-end encryption: This ensures that only participants can access meeting content. If you record the meeting, which many e-conferencing platforms enable, then that video should be impossible for outsiders to see.
Data privacy: Understand how the platform handles user data and complies with relevant regulations. Your location, industry, and clientele all determine what laws apply to your sensitive data.
Access controls: Implement robust authentication and authorization mechanisms. For instance, you should require a password to enter the conference to ensure only authorized invitees can join.
Regular security updates: Ensure the platform is updated with the latest security patches. They should enable you to turn on automatic updates, so that you are always protected against the latest zero-day threats.
Beyond security, video conferencing solutions should boost productivity with these essential features:
High-quality audio and video: Clear communication is essential for effective meetings.
Screen sharing: Collaborate on documents and presentations seamlessly.
Whiteboarding capabilities: Brainstorm and visualize ideas together.
Meeting recording: Capture and share meeting content for reference.
Integration with other tools: Seamlessly connect with calendar, email, and other business applications.
Virtual backgrounds: Create a professional environment for remote participants, allowing them to remove focus from messy or loud workspaces.
Reliable customer support: The right platform will have reliable customer support to troubleshoot issues and ensure a smooth experience.
Your organization also needs to be proactive with your cybersecurity by following best practices for secure and productive video conferencing:
Safeguard your account with strong, unique passwords. Regularly update these to another combination of letters, numbers and symbols that are hard to guess.
Regularly update your video conferencing software to protect against emerging threats. Turn on automatic updates so you never have to worry about missing new security tools
Exercise caution when dealing with suspicious emails or links to prevent phishing attacks. Is that a real meeting that you’re expecting to be invited to, or did it come out of thin air? Verified participants should still be able to easily navigate the program and administrators should be able to exercise stringent control.
Limit screen sharing to essential content only to protect confidentiality when you’re on a video call. You don’t want to accidentally click over to a tab filled with a record of every employee’s name, address and Social Security Number. Enhance privacy by utilizing virtual backgrounds during meetings as well, so you don’t accidentally give the audience a peek at confidential files on your desk.
Choose your video conferencing platform carefully to meet your organization’s cybersecurity and productivity needs. Maintain that security and productivity by always following best practices.
At Commonwealth Sentinel, we can evaluate your existing IT security and work with your team to improve it. We can also provide a complete source of services. At Commonwealth Sentinel, we stay focused on cyber security so you can focus on other things. Contact us today or sign up for a free consultation.
At Commonwealth Sentinel, we stay focused on cyber security so you can focus on other things.