The summer vacation is almost over and pretty soon students will go back to school. The perfect time then for security company Avast to share some important back-to-school safety tips.

"Locking down school environments is virtually impossible with BYOD and BYOA, so school administrators need best practices to secure their students and staff," said Avast Chief Strategy Officer, Glenn Tailor.


Via Avast Blog.


The 5 tips Avast presented in the infographic above are based on the 5 cybersecurity best practices recommended by the NCCIC (National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center). Here they are, in more detail:

1. Implement Two-Factor Authentication: Two-factor authentication works to significantly reduce or eliminate unauthorized access to your networks and information.
2. Block Malicious Code: Activate application directory whitelisting to prevent non-approved applications from being installed on your network.
3. Limit Number of Privileged Users: System administrators have privileged access that gives them the “keys to your kingdom.” Limit system administrator privileges only to those who have a legitimate need as defined by your management directives.
4. Segment Your Network: Don’t put all your eggs in one basket by having a “flat network”. Use segmentation techniques so that if one part of your network is breached that the integrity of the rest of the network is protected.
5. Lock Your Backdoors: Third parties that share network trust relationships with you may prove to be an Achilles heel by serving as an attack vector into your network. Take action to ensure that all network trust relationships are well-protected using best practices. Have a means to audit the effectiveness of these defenses. Consider terminating or suspending these relationships until sufficient controls are in place to protect your backdoors.

In related news…

Did you know that Avast is currently in the process of acquiring AVG for $1.3 billion?