{"id":35025,"date":"2022-02-22T10:33:38","date_gmt":"2022-02-22T15:33:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/?p=35025"},"modified":"2022-02-22T10:33:38","modified_gmt":"2022-02-22T15:33:38","slug":"employees-working-at-home-creates-issues-for-businesses-including-cybersecurity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/2022\/02\/employees-working-at-home-creates-issues-for-businesses-including-cybersecurity\/","title":{"rendered":"Employees Working At Home Creates Issues For Businesses, Including Cybersecurity"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
Martin A. Miranda, senior counsel at Tully Rinckey PLLC.
Courtesy Tully Rinckey PLLC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By Jennifer Farnsworth<\/p>\n

Part of owning a small business is having a good understanding of the laws that effect it over time. In recent years, understanding codes and protocols is more important than ever.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Law firms and human resource consulting agencies can be important resources to help small business owners. They can even ultimately protect their livelihood.<\/p>\n

Martin A. Miranda, senior counsel at Tully Rinckey PLLC, said his firm has seen an increase in cybersecurity concerns, as well as pandemic-related issues faced by small businesses.<\/p>\n

\u201cDue to the pandemic small businesses have relied more on their online business platforms.\u00a0 <\/span>As more employees work from home, there has also been a significant increase in cyber attacks aimed at small businesses,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHackers may find small businesses particularly vulnerable for lacking adequate technology infrastructure and data security expertise.\u201d<\/p>\n

Miranda said to compound problems, networks outside of the workplace may not possess sufficient security measures to prevent cyber attacks, which have become increasingly more sophisticated and targeted. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Common methods of cyber attacks include phishing schemes, social engineering, malware, ransomware and password hacking,\u00a0 <\/span>said Miranda.<\/p>\n

He has also seen an increase in small businesses reaching out on how to best follow COVID protocols, a completely new area for small business owners to have to navigate.<\/p>\n

\u201cI receive many questions regarding how small businesses can maintain a safe work environment for their employees as COVID protocols evolve in response to the multiple variants. Implementing these protocols can be burdensome for a small business and enforcing the protocols can often lead to differences of opinion among employees,\u201d said Miranda.<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"
Debra J. M. Best, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, of Deb Best Practices.
Courtesy Deb Best Practices<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Attorney Marc Roman at The Towne Law Firm, P.C., provides a variety of cybersecurity, data protection, privacy and information technology services to clients.\u00a0 <\/span>He said small businesses have recently developed a keen awareness of multiple exposures across a variety of risk vectors that demand their attention and remediation efforts.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom a Human Resources perspective, small businesses continue to seek control over COVID-related staff costs, including legal liability, by implementing policies and biometric mechanisms that are often more rigorous than commercial regulatory guidance requires. Certain SMBs have also implemented policies that allow for staff separation where management is uncomfortable with either risk ambiguities and\/or persistent staff resistance to certain control protocols,\u201d said Roman.<\/p>\n

Roman also said from an IT perspective, many businesses are moving to cost-effective cloud-based platforms and products in an attempt to shift vulnerability risk management and maintenance considerations to third-party providers like Microsoft Office 365. The additional use of third-party vendors to provide outsourced IT technical support, management, and maintenance resources often leads to the establishment and management of new small business third-party vendor management programs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSmall business risk concerns have been amplified over the last several years by macro-scale unpredictability in both the economic landscape and the continuing COVID-19 pandemic,\u201d said Roman.<\/p>\n

Roman said access to adequate legal support is always a concern, especially against a backdrop of changing regulatory landscapes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhile the costs incurred for legal services may often be budgeted for, the defense against regulatory actions or the handling of civil claims by small businesses remains persistently unpredictable, and tends to also invoke non-economic, unforecastable costs such as evidentiary assessment and artifact collection efforts, and increased time investments from trusted management or critical staff,\u201d said Roman.<\/p>\n

Debra J. M. Best, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, of Deb Best Practices, has seen similar concerns at her human resources consulting practice. She has also seen an increase in COVID concerns for small businesses owners.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor small businesses who have not ordinarily been required to implement and document safety protocols, COVID-19 compliance and safety protocols are like OSHA on steroids. Almost all of the COVID-19 protocols are how employees should conduct themselves safely and what employers are required to do to keep employees safe, consequently the overlap with HR work,\u201d said Best.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Marc Roman is an attorney at The Towne Law Firm PC.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Miranda said other concerns have centered around employees working remotely. He said with evolving COVID protocols, it can be challenging for small businesses to ensure their employees remain safe and productive, all while feeling connected with their colleagues.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSchool and daycare closures due to a COVID exposure have created an increased strain on employees trying to balance their employment obligations with family life and personal time,\u201d said Miranda.<\/p>\n

Overall, Miranda said privacy issues remain a top concern for small business owners.<\/p>\n

\u201cSmall businesses may not fully appreciate their vulnerability to data privacy breaches until it\u2019s too late. Employees working while quarantined or in isolation can lead to inconsistent quality of service and general slowdown of services due to a decrease in available workforce. In light of these challenges, a small business can best prepare for commercial disruptions by staying up to date about the shifting landscape of cyber attacks and improving their communication concerning policies designed to protect employees from COVID outbreak,\u201d said Miranda.<\/p>\n

Best said the best advice she can give to small business owners is to keep the lines of communication open.<\/p>\n

\u201cCommunication, communication, communication, especially effective face-to-face communication and clear follow up written communication to summarize the face-to-face communication. Employers can never communicate enough, it takes the average adult 5 times to integrate new information and new concepts,\u201d said Best.<\/p>\n

She also recommends establishing a relationship with an employer-side labor lawyer who specializes in NYS and federal employment law and regulation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is such a large and complex area of the law, a general practice lawyer generally does not have the resources and the required knowledge base. Establishing that relationship when an employment compliance issue arises can be needlessly stressful,\u201d said Best.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Jennifer Farnsworth Part of owning a small business is having a good understanding of the laws that effect it over time. In recent years, understanding codes and protocols is more important than ever.\u00a0 Law firms and human resource consulting agencies can be important resources to help small business owners. 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