Keeping your information secure! An interview with Marco Weis
16. Mär 2023
In the first part of this interview, Marco Weis already pointed out the various threats to information. Today you can find out what information security at the BAUR Group is doing to protect information, but also what you can do yourself to ensure that your own information is not at risk!
How do you and your colleagues at BAUR-IT ensure that information is secure?
We need to make a distinction here: Although we in Information Security are part of IT, my position as Information Security Officer is a separate role, as I am a staff unit with a somewhat separate task. The tasks of IT itself naturally contribute significantly to the protection of information. This is the operation of security tools such as firewalls or anti-virus software, but also, for example, central software distribution, which is used to distribute updates. We check the networks of our divisions and our systems to see which vulnerabilities exist and where an update is required to fix them.
IT also operates the network infrastructure to move information back and forth and back-up systems that can be used to restore data if something goes wrong.
Separately, there is also my staff unit together with my deputy Monika. For the BAUR Group Germany, we have set up a contact person for information security (AIS for short) at each of our Group's subsidiaries. These AISs act as central competence centers for information security and as an interface. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my AIS and my deputy Moni!
We are therefore an overarching authority that keeps an eye on the big picture. We check:
- Which requirements are relevant for the BAUR Group and what do we need to achieve our level of security?
- Do the areas in the company meet our requirements? On the other hand, we are also constantly being audited, for example, customers want to know how we operate information security and whether business information is secure.
No two days are the same for us, because there is always something new and we are constantly confronted with new topics or projects in which we are involved. So it's a very extensive and extremely exciting job!
Does the BAUR Group have measures or offers to educate and train employees on information security issues?
We have our eLearning as a central training measure, i.e. we use a platform on which we provide one eLearning per financial year, which can generally be used by all employees, especially in the commercial area. For the many employees in the commercial areas, we create handouts with important information that we distribute regularly. Another platform also provides courses on cyber security, which can be used primarily by IT employees of the BAUR Group.
In addition to these general courses, we also offer individual training for individual departments or teams. If they need support with a specific information security topic, we can provide training for specific target groups.
We also create event-related articles in which we draw attention to current threats or vulnerabilities
What should you pay attention to in order to protect important information in both your professional and private environment?
Having already learned in Part 1 that there is a wide range of threats, there are also many factors that you can and should be careful about. The following options are universally applicable for all people:
Passwords
Nowadays, most people have a lot of accounts, both professionally and privately, and it is essential to protect their access with the strongest possible password.
What does a strong password look like?
2- Factor authentication
Passwortmanager
E-Mail-Account
The email account is particularly critical when it comes to passwords. Online stores, social networks etc. are usually used in conjunction with your own email, so this account is often the hub. It is therefore particularly important to use an extremely strong password here.
Multiple e-mail accounts
Links and attachments
Surfing and online stores
With browsers, you should always make sure that the website you are using is encrypted. You can easily tell whether this is the case if the browser line contains "https" at the beginning of the URL and/or the padlock symbol is visible. When calling up unencrypted websites, there are often messages that draw attention to the lack of encryption.
You should pay particular attention to seals of approval for online stores. There are special security seals that an online store can receive as proof of its security requirements. In addition, different payment methods often give an indication of the trustworthiness of an online store. Many fake stores supposedly offer many payment methods, but during the ordering process itself suddenly only prepayment or similar is possible. Particularly tempting prices that stand out from other offers are also often an indication of dubious providers
How else you can protect yourself:
Antivirussoftware und Updates
External backup of information
Social Media
WLAN
Dear Marco, thank you very much for these many important insights into information security. If you would like to learn more about this topic, you can find out more on the website of the Federal Office for Information Security.
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Hello and welcome to the BAUR Group JobsBlog! My name is Sabine and I regularly write blog posts for you as a working student in the HR Marketing team.
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