The Role of HR and IT in Collaborative Onboarding Security

The moment a new employee joins your organization represents a critical security vulnerability. To protect your business data, HR and IT departments must work together to implement secure onboarding processes, especially for remote employees.

Understanding the Onboarding Process

Though they may not be cybersecurity experts, the role of a modern HR professional is closely intertwined with some of the major security concerns that businesses like yours are up against.

The administrative responsibilities of HR departments in onboarding new employees, such as collecting personal data and processing contracts, tend to create huge stores of sensitive information. HR departments need to be actively protecting this data and ensuring compliance with relevant privacy laws.

Many modern companies like to streamline their onboarding process with employee software like Ultra HR, which comes with “several layers of security and business continuity” built-in to defend from breaches. However, this doesn’t protect from human error and complacency that could cause issues later on.

State-level legislation like the CCPA, and international directives like GDPR, mean that any onboarding process needs to abide by strict regulations when it comes to handling employee data.

To proactively ensure the onboarding process is as secure as possible, HR professionals should familiarize themselves with regulations surrounding key areas of personal data security, such as:

• Personal data encryption and how HR software ensures this

• Data erasure and the ‘right to be forgotten’

• Employee consent

• Data quality checks

• Protections against data loss

HR's Role in Cybersecurity During Onboarding

Modern HR departments handle vast amounts of sensitive information during employee onboarding. Personal data collection, contract processing, and credential setup create security risks that require careful management.

HR professionals need to understand their cybersecurity responsibilities, particularly regarding:

• Personal data encryption requirements
• Data erasure protocols and "right to be forgotten" obligations
• Proper employee consent documentation
• Data quality verification procedures
• Protection mechanisms against data loss

State and international regulations like CCPA and GDPR impose strict requirements on handling employee data during onboarding. Meeting these compliance standards requires deliberate procedures rather than relying solely on HR software's built-in security features.

Critical Security Measures for New Employees

When onboarding employees, especially remote workers, several security practices are essential:

Access Control Implementation

Effective access control balances providing employees with necessary resources while preventing unauthorized access. This requires:

• Role-based access limitations
• Principle of least privilege application
• Regular access reviews
• Automated provisioning and deprovisioning

Security teams should work with HR to define appropriate access levels for each role before employees begin.

Protection Against Common Onboarding Threats

Two major security risks during onboarding require special attention:

Phishing Attack Prevention

New employees are particularly vulnerable to phishing attempts. They may not recognize your organization's communication patterns or may be eager to respond to what appears to be legitimate onboarding communications.

Onboarding security training should include:

• Examples of legitimate company communications
• Common phishing indicators
• Verification procedures for suspicious requests
• Proper reporting channels for potential threats

Identity Attack Safeguards

Identity-based attacks using legitimate credentials are difficult to detect. Protect against these by:

• Implementing strong password policies from day one
• Requiring multi-factor authentication for all new accounts
• Using adaptive authentication for sensitive systems
• Setting up anomaly detection for new user accounts
• Conducting regular access rights reviews

Secure Remote Employee Onboarding

Remote work introduces additional security challenges during onboarding:

• Secure device provisioning must occur before employees receive equipment
• Home network security assessments should be part of onboarding
• VPN setup and verification must be completed before access to sensitive systems
• Clear documentation of remote work security policies must be provided
• Encrypted communication channels for all onboarding activities are essential

Best Practices for HR-IT Security Collaboration

To strengthen your organization's approach to secure onboarding:

1. Create a documented security onboarding workflow with clear responsibilities for both departments
2. Develop role-specific security training modules
3. Implement security verification checkpoints throughout the onboarding process
4. Establish formal communication channels between HR and security teams
5. Conduct regular security audits of the onboarding procedure
6. Create standardized response procedures for security incidents during onboarding

Secure From The Start…

Secure employee onboarding requires thoughtful collaboration between HR and IT departments. By prioritizing cybersecurity throughout this process, you protect sensitive company and employee data while establishing security awareness from day one.

As remote work continues to be commonplace and regulatory requirements grow more stringent, organizations with robust onboarding security protocols gain significant advantages in risk reduction, compliance, and overall data protection.

Sign up for a free trial of TeamPassword to keep your business passwords secure.