Cybersecurity for remote and hybrid workers

For remote, hybrid and traveling employees: secure your home network, devices and travel days, and know exactly what to do when a device goes missing.

For: Remote, hybrid and traveling employees in any industry, including field staff, sales representatives, consultants and anyone who works from home part of the week

  • 2 contact hours
  • 7 modules
  • 8 interactives
  • 3 job aids
  • Updated October 11, 2026

What you will be able to do

  • Recognize the main security threats remote and hybrid workers face, including weak home networks, untrusted public networks, lost devices, shared family devices, impersonation and physical exposure.
  • Secure a home network by changing router admin credentials, enabling WPA3 or WPA2-AES and automatic firmware updates, disabling unneeded features and separating smart devices onto a guest network.
  • Apply a device baseline of updates, encryption, screen locks, approved apps and storage to company and personal (BYOD) devices, and prevent leaks through screen sharing and home printing.
  • Choose safe connections and physical-security habits in public places and while traveling, including VPN and hotspot use, shoulder-surfing defenses and awareness of U.S. border device searches.
  • Report lost or stolen devices and suspected incidents immediately with the facts IT needs, and verify suspicious requests out of band before acting.

Learn how to work securely wherever your laptop goes. You will lock down a home router in plain language, set a device baseline for company and personal devices, choose safe connections in airports and hotels, protect work during travel and border crossings, share your screen without oversharing, and handle the first hour after a device is lost or something feels wrong.

This course is for remote, hybrid and traveling employees, from people who work from home two days a week to field staff who live out of a rental car. No technical background is needed. Every module starts with a realistic situation and ends with three things you can do on your next workday.

Remote work removes many of the protections an office provides without anyone noticing: managed networks, locked doors, shredding bins and a colleague you can ask in person. The course follows NIST SP 800-46 Rev. 2, the NIST Cybersecurity Framework 2.0 and CISA, NSA, FTC and FBI guidance, and gives you three job aids: a phishing and verification checklist, a lost-device incident report template and an account and device security checklist.

What you’ll be able to do Monday morning

  1. Log in to your router and replace the factory admin password, then check that encryption is WPA3 or WPA2-AES.
  2. Install pending updates, confirm encryption and an auto-locking screen on your laptop and phone, and keep family members off work devices.
  3. Turn off auto-join for public Wi-Fi and start the company VPN before opening work apps away from home.
  4. Share a single window, with notifications off, in every video meeting.
  5. Save your IT service desk number on paper and report any lost device or suspicious prompt the moment you notice it.

Curriculum

7 modules · 26 lessons · about 2 contact hours

01What changes when your office is your kitchen table?Free preview14 min
  1. Why does remote work change the risk picture?
  2. What are the most common remote and hybrid threats?
  3. Why should a work laptop never be a family laptop?
  • Self-assessment: How secure is your home office?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

02How do you lock down your home Wi-Fi and router?15 min
  1. Why does your router matter so much?
  2. Which router settings should you change first?
  3. Why separate work, family and smart devices?
  • Spot the issue: Spot the risky router settings

Diagram · In practice checklist · 3-question knowledge check

03Is your work device actually protected, including the phone in your pocket?15 min
  1. Why do updates matter more than almost anything else?
  2. What is the minimum device protection for work?
  3. What changes when you use your own device for work?
  4. What about USB drives, external disks and personal cloud storage?
  • Sort activity: Safe, ask IT first, or never?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

04Is the coffee shop or airport Wi-Fi safe for work?14 min
  1. What can actually go wrong on public Wi-Fi?
  2. What does a VPN do, and what doesn't it do?
  3. How do you work safely in public places?
  4. What about hotel networks, conference Wi-Fi and Bluetooth sharing?
  • Decision tree: Is this connection OK for this task?
  • Branching scenario: A long day on the road

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

05How do you protect work data on the road, in hotels and at the border?15 min
  1. What are the travel risks for work devices?
  2. What should remote workers know about device searches at the U.S. border?
  3. What about physical security at home?
  4. What changes at coworking spaces and client sites?
  • Matching activity: Match the risk to the control

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

06How do you keep video meetings and home printing from leaking information?14 min
  1. How do you share your screen without oversharing?
  2. How do you keep meetings themselves secure?
  3. Is it safe to print work documents at home?
  4. How do you set up a home workspace for confidential calls?
  • Spot the issue: Spot the problems before you share

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

07What do you do in the first hour after a device goes missing or something feels wrong?15 min
  1. Why does speed matter more than blame?
  2. What are the first-hour steps for a lost or stolen device?
  3. How do you verify a suspicious request when you cannot walk down the hall?
  4. What does a useful incident report include?
  • Ethics dilemma: The near miss nobody saw

Diagram · In practice checklist · 3-question knowledge check

Final assessment: 23 questions, 70% to pass, then your certificate

Try it now, no account needed

A long day on the road

A branching scenario from this course. Your choices are not saved.

Free sample activity

A long day on the road

You are Delaney, a medical device sales rep. Today includes an airport, a rental car and a hotel. Make each call.

Inside the course

Practice activities

  • Self-assessment1
  • Spot the issue2
  • Sort activity1
  • Decision tree1
  • Branching scenario1
  • Matching activity1
  • Ethics dilemma1

Job aids you keep

  • Remote Worker Phishing and Verification ChecklistChecklist
  • Lost Device and Security Incident ReportTemplate
  • Remote Worker Account and Device Security ChecklistChecklist

Credit and approval status

Certificate of completion

This course awards a certificate of completion for 2 contact hours of instruction. It has not been approved or accredited by IACET, any licensing board, any state agency or any other accreditor, and it is not a government training program. It is general cybersecurity awareness training aligned with public guidance from NIST, CISA, NSA, the FTC and the FBI. Check with your employer, licensing board or professional body whether this course can count toward your security-awareness training records or continuing education.

A pathway we are pursuing or may pursue is IACET accreditation of our course development process. No approval exists today; we will show an approval on this page only after it is granted.

Our full approvals list

Questions about this course

Who should take this course?

Anyone who works away from a traditional office some or all of the time: remote and hybrid employees, field staff, sales representatives, consultants, auditors and frequent travelers. No technical background is needed. Managers of remote teams will also find it useful for setting expectations about home networks, devices and reporting.

Does this course count toward continuing education?

You receive a certificate of completion for 2 contact hours of instruction. The course is not currently approved or accredited by IACET, a licensing board or any other accreditor. Check with your employer or board whether it can count toward your training or continuing education records.

Will it satisfy my employer's security-awareness training requirement?

That depends on your employer's policies, contracts and any industry rules that apply. Many employers accept outside awareness courses, but some require their own. Ask your manager, IT or compliance team before you enroll, and share the outline and objectives if helpful.

How long does it take?

Plan on about 2 hours, including seven short modules, interactive activities, knowledge checks and a 23-question final assessment with a 70% pass mark. You can pause and return at any time.

Do I need to change settings on my router to complete it?

No. The course explains which settings matter and why, and the job aids help you make changes later at your own pace. If your router or devices are supplied or managed by your employer, follow IT's instructions instead of changing them yourself.

Is this legal advice about border searches?

No. The border section is general awareness of how U.S. Customs and Border Protection describes device searches. Your employer's legal or security team decides how your organization handles international travel with work devices, and you should follow that policy.

This course is general education and cybersecurity awareness training from CE Courses Hub. It is not legal, technical or professional advice and does not replace your employer's security and remote work policies, your licensing board's rules, or advice from a qualified professional. Completing it earns a certificate of completion for the stated contact hours; it is not approved or accredited by any licensing board, state agency or accreditor unless an approval is shown on the course page. Check with your board, employer or state agency whether this course meets your specific requirement.