Whether you work primarily from a central office or a laptop hovering over the kitchen table, everyone can change scenery from time to time.
And, with London filled with relaxed and comfortable co-working environments, from cafes and pubs to libraries and co-working spaces, you certainly have plenty of options. But working in public means exposing yourself to certain risks that are simply not a factor in a family environment. Here's how to securely share desktops in London. Update your laptop in advance
Before you even start exploring, make sure your laptop is fully up to date - browser, operating system, antivirus software - everything works.
This is for two reasons: first, because you don't want to get an urgent update before it gets to your workspace, and second, because using a public internet connection can expose you to security threats. know. face home If your computer is already protected from known attacks and vulnerabilities, you will start from a safer location.
Find a quiet time to share your desktop with Google Maps
There is nothing worse than going to a promising looking cafe only to find all the tables and outlets being used by others with the same idea. The good news is, you can plan ahead with a little help from Google. Simply search Maps or Google for the place you have in mind and the information box will tell you how busy you can expect it to be and if you need to make alternative plans. Be careful with public Wi-Fi
If you work in a public place, you will likely have to rely on public WiFi, which is inherently less secure than yours or your employer's. You don't know who set it up and who else is using it. You can avoid this altogether by sharing your phone data - we'll talk about that in a bit - but there are some steps you can take to make it more secure, if not completely secure.
First of all, use the actual WiFi network provided from wherever you are, not some unsecured random network that anyone may have set up. This isn't guaranteed to be secure, of course, but it's safer than connecting to any old unlocked WiFi network, for obvious reasons.
While browsing the web, stick to https sites. Without the "S", anyone on an unsecured network can see the data traveling between you and the website.
Finally, use a VPN or virtual private network. This encrypts the data coming from your phone and roots it through a secure server, making it difficult to spy on your transactions. However, not all VPNs are created equal - avoid free ones at all costs and consider a trustworthy brand, such as NordVPN or ExpressVPN.
Even if WiFi is as secure as homes, you may run into another problem: speed. In short, multiple people sharing a connection can lead to painfully slow speeds, especially if your nearby hot deskers are data hogs. In that situation, you can always use your phone as a WiFi hotspot and take advantage of your (hopefully faster) 5G signal.
There are certainly reasons not to - you may have limited data you need to save and laptops gobble up faster than phones, but, if you're having trouble with WiFi cafe, it might be wise to take matters into your own hands. . Always keep an eye on your laptop ... but be prepared for theft
Of course, you shouldn't leave your laptop unprotected, you're just asking for it to be stolen. But you should always be prepared for the worst: whether it belongs to you or your company, your computer contains sensitive files and you don't want a thief to be able to access them. Make sure your laptop is password protected, and if your laptop offers fingerprint protection, use that too.
Get in the habit of locking your PC if you walk away, but if you're on Windows 10 or 11, you can also make it happen automatically if your phone goes out of Bluetooth range (enable Dynamic Lock in "Account"> "Sign In '). -in options'.)
Remember, not all threats are remote
While cybersecurity threats are certainly important, let's not forget the most basic risk of working in public: people with a direct view of any sensitive document you're working on. Use your common sense here: if you're working on top-secret and mission-critical stuff, don't have the screen in front of all the coffee.