More and more employees are working in remote positions, either full-time or some days of the week, with a large percentage of the workforce looking towards finding job opportunities with flexible schedules. Companies are also embracing this growing desire, increasingly using flexible work options as a way to entice new employees. It is a good idea to take a step back and evaluate how the industry is doing, the changes it brings along, how things have evolved in 2019 and its projections for 2020 and beyond. There are a million and one remote tech support options out there. We’ll look at the best ones here, whether you need to walk them through downloading one over the phone or want to set up remote access ahead of time. According to Charles Andrews, Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) at Guardian Computer: “As more and more employees begin working from home, it becomes increasingly important for organizations to ensure that all workers have reliable, secure internet connections. Fortunately, Managed Service Providers (MSPs) can help set up and maintain these connections across an entire enterprise. We guide workers through the process of installing a network and its security at their remote location. With our ongoing support, employees are able to contact us for expert help with any issues they may encounter” Remote Work Connection Using Team Viewer TeamViewer is the remote support tool of choice for many remote workers. It can be used in multiple different ways. You can ask your colleague to download the TeamViewer QuickSupport application, which can open without administrator access or any admin or system configuration. It will give them a session ID and password that they can give to you, allowing you to easily remotely connect from your TeamViewer program. Remote Work Connection Using Windows Remote Assistance Windows has a built-in remote assistance feature designed for just this situation. While only Professional editions of Windows can use the remote desktop server software, every version of Windows can send a remote assistance invitation and invite someone else to assist with their computers. This can be a convenient option because it’s already installed on the remote Windows computer, so you don’t have to walk the person through installing anything. Remote Work Connection Using Chrome Remote Desktop There’s a good chance both you and your recipient already have Google’s Chrome browser installed on your computers. If you do, you can use Chrome Remote Desktop to connect to them remotely.To do this, both you and the other person will need to have the Chrome Remote Desktop app installed. Remote Work Connection Using a Virtual Private Network Social lockdown to combat the effects of a pandemic has been proven to seriously impact working practices. While there are various solutions to this, for office workers a key weapon is a VPN. Remote working is a security risk in many ways, not least in giving cybercriminals new avenues for attack. Hackers can intercept unencrypted connections, for example. Passwords can be sniffed, stolen, and used, and sensitive data stolen. With a connection to your employer’s network secured by a VPN, you can work with confidence. Encrypted connections cannot be sniffed. Your password remains safe. Ideally this VPN would be provided by your employer. If no VPN provision has been made, reach out to your IT colleagues. While it’s possible you’ll be refused, it would be short-sighted.
