Good things come in threes—movie franchises, acts in plays, courses at dinner, primary colors, states of matter, etc. And we can add that list remote workers, which tend to come in three groupable varieties:

• General Users: Baseline remote workers that need secure access to universal network, app and tool resources. They can be stationary (work from home) or mobile (work from anywhere).
• Power Users: Employees requiring secure network/infrastructure access from designated remote work locations for extended periods.
• Super Users: Users with privileged credentials or access to sensitive data. Securing their access and activities is essential for strategic, proprietary or other factors.

Sorting, Simplifying and Securing

Categorizing users into these three buckets provides your MSSP with, conveniently enough, three immediate benefits:

• A framework for meaningful client remote-work discussions. Many clients don’t know how to properly categorize their users (many think in terms of fixed-location and mobile users only).
• The ability for your MSSP and your provider’s channel team to easily scope appropriate and right-sized solutions for your clients.
• An instant method of identifying and managing high-risk (or higher risk) users.

Here’s how Fortinet breaks down services by the three user types:

• General Users: Core users need secure access from home and when they travel to another location (coffee shop, airport, customer site, etc.). The solutions mix appropriate to this user set includes:
  • Virtual Private Network (VPN)
  • Secure home network (like Linksys HomeWRK) 
  • Identify verification
• Power Users: Heavy users need easier access to secure connectivity from their primary work locations. Solutions for these users include:
  • Secure wireless connection managed remotely via a next-generation firewall
  • Identity verification
  • VPN (for use when away from the primary location)
• Super Users: Users with access to highly sensitive information should be wrapped in protection like they’re a branch office unto themselves. These users need:
  • A dedicated next-generation firewall (or secure Wi-Fi with a next-generation firewall included)
  • Identity verification
  • VPN (for use when away from the primary location)

Talking Points

Here are some talking points that may be useful in discussions with clients and prospects:

• Right-sized solutions can deliver smart and affordable security to your remote workforce. Some employees need access to basic tools on the fly, some access sensitive information and need to be locked down extra tight and others fall somewhere in between. Delivering three distinct tiers of protection allows you to get the security you need without blowing out your budget on one end or getting mired down in customization on the other.
• Securing your remote/hybrid workforce provides you with business continuity. The Covid-19 pandemic and increases in natural and human-caused disasters have driven home the need to deploy and scale remote workforces on short notice. Today's planning steps can provide a secure solution central to your business continuity planning.

More Information

More information on securing the three tiers of remote workers, including technical specs and detailed product information, is available in this datasheet.