Goering Center news: Tips to tighten your cybersecurity nets

By David Owens

Over the last decade, office technology has advanced tremendously. Networked printers and copiers have taken this technology to the next level, providing businesses and organizations with a host of advantages such as flexibility, functionality, increased efficiency and reduced costs.

Unfortunately, many organizations are not aware of the potential risks involved with networked printers and copiers. Like computers, today’s networked multifunction printers and copiers are vulnerable to data breaches unless they are secured. A wide range of organizations, from schools to hospitals to businesses, are all putting themselves at risk with unsecured end-points running on their IT networks.

The purpose of this article is to provide you with an overview of the steps you need to take in securing your multifunction printers and copiers to protect your valuable data and sensitive information.

Depending on the size and scope of its operation, it is not uncommon for an organization to be unaware of what devices are connected to their network, or whether these devices have been configured with the proper security checks. The printers and copiers themselves can create a security risk if they are running with outdated firmware.

An aspect of security that is often overlooked is once you are ready to retire a printer/copier or return it to a leasing agency, it is crucial that you remove any data that may be retained in the hardware’s memory. Ensuring that the device's hard disk is erased, destroyed or removed will provide you with a final added measure of security.

Start the process of defending your printers, documents and data from network threats by physically securing your printers and copiers. If possible, move printers that are out in the open into a controlled access area. Access can further be controlled by disabling physical ports to prevent unauthorized use.

Data can also be protected by authenticating users and attaching them to their specific documents. Document owners are then required to authenticate themselves to the printer or copier before their documents will print.

To provide the users of office technology with efficient, turn-key product solutions, many printer and copier manufacturers are offering models with a wide range of services and protocols built in.

Many of these enabled-by-default protocols are unnecessary and not secure. Leaving these services enabled may provide attackers with the ability to access the printer/copier data directly.

Wireless technology has been an amazing advancement in promoting efficiency and productivity in the workplace. Unfortunately, with the benefits come risks. Your documents and data become highly vulnerable as they traverse the "wireless network" to a multifunction printer or copier. Once your information makes it to the hardware's memory or storage, it is susceptible to attack there as well.

The best way to protect sensitive data within your network is with encryption. Encrypt print and copier jobs to secure data in transit in the event of interception and use encrypted storage to protect documents in the device’s queue.

The importance of staying on top of software and hardware firmware updates cannot be overstated. This includes the firmware used in your multifunction printers and copiers.

Some printers and copiers with an internet connection will automatically check for new firmware and install it. Others will require you to periodically to visit the manufacturer website for firmware update downloads, which you can retrieve and install yourself.

Ignoring updates and patches will likely result in the development of critical vulnerability points in your network.

Without a doubt, the best way to secure your printer and copier is to invest in technology that is pre-programmed with the most up-to-date device security features. Look for multifunction printers and copiers that are designed to independently detect, protect, and self-repair damage from malware attacks.

As you upgrade outdated equipment, replace it with systems that offer built-in threat detection and software validation features, so only authorized firmware and software can be installed and executed. This will provide your network with an extra layer of security.

David Owens is Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Full Service Networking, a Modern Office Methods company and Goering Center member organization. Reach David at 513-699-1202 or david.owens@fullservice.net.