5 G-Suite Security Mistakes Every Admin Should Avoid

Can you imagine the panic it creates when you notice that your account is hacked? Within a minute your stress level shoots up, and everything turns out to be a mess. Well, no one would like to experience such a situation.

Taking care of the security of the Gmail account is your responsibility, Gmail — G-suite provides enough precautionary steps to keep the account safe, but the question is are we utilizing those safety measures?

We sometimes take those guidelines very casually, and that puts the safety quotient in danger.

Google's widespread presence and usage of G-suite in companies and offices have put it in the spotlight. With the rapid increase in the number of users, the danger has also increased. The question of security still prevails.

To combat security issues, some users are relying on 3rd party applications. But still, some loopholes are unsolved and it increases the chance of data leakage or less secure Gmail/G Suite accounts.

There is no cent percent proven way to deal with the security measures, but we surely have some don't for G-suite users. 5 major mistakes that a G-suite admin should never make. As those mistakes will put the security of the account at stake.

Let's have a look at 5 major G Suite security mistakes that a admin should avoid.

1. Relying too much on 3rd-party applications:

Have you ever read the Terms and Conditions before actually agreeing to it?

Whenever we download an application, the popup menu always asks about agreeing to terms and conditions and getting certain permission; we just randomly put a tick mark and download the app as we are always either in a hurry, or we take those permissions lightly.

The app makers are smart enough to take benefit of this. Then we'll intentionally ask permission to get your crucial data and privacy setting.

This data can help leak important details and hack your account.

Also, sometimes such applications ask for a password, and we just provide them to them without a second thought.

Pro Tip:

It is advisable to download authenticated applications only. Read the permission, terms and conditions before accepting it. It can help you understand which data you are sharing with those app makers.

Also, I prefer checking the reviews of applications before downloading or making my mind about using them.

Some people raise the query in comment or reviews about applications; so it will give you an instant insight into the reliability of the application.

2. Not Checking the Data Leaking

It is observed that people have started preferring G-Suite over Microsoft because it provides a quick option to collaborate with others.

This advantage or advantageous tool has helped many businesses to grow stably and enjoy the benefits of G-suite features, but as every coin has two sides — if you think about it, this advantage can be misused if proper care is not taken.

So, if you are a G-suite admin by now, you must be wondering how to combat this situation, how to prevent turning this advantage into a disadvantage?

Don't worry, we have found a solution that will help you to deal with such a problem.

If you don't want anyone to take unreasonable advantage of this feature, you can simply turn on the Data Loss Prevention Feature in G-Suite applications like Gmail, or Google Drive, Google Sheet, Google Slides, Google Docs or any other Google application which you or your teammates are using.

It may also function with the help of a warning message to lessen the cases of data leakage.

Pro Tip:

Always keep the Data Loss Prevention Feature On and try to only collaborate only if it is highly needed or required. Avoid collaborating just out of fashion or trend.

3. Not relying on Google Security Audit

Google is a promising platform, and it is being trusted by billions of users; there is no doubt about the authenticity of the platform. It's worth trusting, it's worth using.

Google also wants its users' data to remain safe, and it extends timely help to keep a check on security control.

Often when we log in, google asks us to update the Recovery Information.

This information is used when you forget the password or someone else changes the password of your account.

In all such cases, Google will use your recovery information to contact you and help you get your account back.

Also, turn on your security settings; therefore, it will send you an instant email if your Gmail account is being logged in from any other devices except yours.

It will send you the time of logging in, place and device name or number.

This information will give you a hint about who might have logged in or it will make you understand that someone else has used your id and password.

Pro Tip:

Google has numerous users, so it will only retain your security data for a particular period, therefore it is necessary to timely check the security audit presented by Google.

If Google notifies you about some suspicious activity, you can immediately revert them so that the actions are taken at the right time.

4. Altering or changing Passwords too Frequently

Users show an extreme trend, few people keep on changing their passwords now and then, whereas few users will not change their passwords from time to time.

When you don't change your password from time to time or change it too frequently; first you might face difficulty in remembering it.

Many people use the option of 'Save Password' while logging in so that they don't have to remember the password, and in the long run, they end up forgetting their password.

They don't realise that when you opt for 'Save Password', anyone else can also log in to your account without even informing you, and Google might also not feel it is a suspicious activity as the password is saved.

In certain cases when the password is changed now and then, again you might get tangled in your series of the password. It is difficult to remember the latest password and the confusion will not help you to keep your account safe.

It is also observed that some people keep a too direct password; they will not follow the guidelines of a strong password.

When setting up a password; google will immediately show password strength. To keep the password strong, one must use one special character, one upper case letter and make the alphanumeric combination.

Pro Tip:

Instead of keeping a password that is obvious like your name, birthday, company name, favourite actor, cricketer, chocolate or cool; try keeping something unusual.

The best way to form a password is in sentence form. It can be anything, your password doesn't need to make sense, but it should be strong.

e.g; ContactbookisCool@147

If you can remember a password then you should avoid using the option of remembering the password, it might save time but reduces security.

5. Forgetting to train new employees

Have you ever asked your employees whether they have used Google applications like docs, sheets, slides before or not? Even if we ask; we just take their answers casually and generically explain them.

But isn't it risky?

When an employee has never used an application before how can you expect them to understand the security concern for that particular application.

It is advisable to give proper training to all the employees from the very beginning about the applications that are being used in the organization. It is essential for them as well as for the company.

Even if the employee has experience in using Microsoft; then he must have experience, but as he has recently joined the organization he might feel hesitant to ask.

Or he might feel that other employees will make fun of his inadequate knowledge.

So it is better that the company comes forward in that case, provides essential training and keeps in check with employees whether they are comfortable using the applications, are facing any difficulties or is there any other problem?

This way the employees will also understand about the application easily, and they will feel easy to communicate if they face any problem.

Skipping the training part can put the data and security of your company in danger.

ProTip:

Make the training a compulsory regime and a part of the employee induction ceremony. So as soon as an employee joins the company, he or she will be trained about essential things first.

After training, conduct a monthly meeting with employees to know whether or not they have understood the details about the application they are using and how to keep the data secured.

Guidelines for G-Suite Admin:

Here are a few G Suite Admin guidelines to perform the security checklist easily and quite speedily too.

• G-Suite security should be a practice that needs to be followed on a regular basis.
• Second, if you find something suspicious or unusual, don't take it lightly or don't waste days investigating it, instead immediately contact the concerned department.
• Keep an eye on the G-suite updates.
• Get all the information that revolves around security measures while using G-Suite, understand the applications that you use, get to know the security parameters of those apps, read the permission while downloading the application.
• Give a case study to the employee and get insights about their understanding like What will you do if you find that your account is hacked?

Following all these points will help you to make the security check a part of your routine.

Checking security measures cannot be done once in a while or randomly at any time of your choice.

You need to do it from time to time, maintain the frequency and act accordingly.

Bottom Line:

Measures of security are not special practices, but they should be part of everyone's daily routine. You have to get concerned about security to deal with the threat.

Continue all the security practices to save yourself from some unwanted trouble. Also, Google has launched promising products and applications; the applications are so prominent that it is difficult to find an alternative for them.

It's better to make the most of precautionary measures so that you can enjoy using Google Applications.

Moreover, if you think the current security standards are not helping you out much, there is another way.

You can develop your in-house security team to take care of all the security portions, and it will help you to focus on your work rather than worrying about the threat of hacking or data leakage.

‍