What Happens to Your Data When an Employee Leaves?
When an employee leaves your company—whether on good terms or not—there’s often more at stake than a simple handoff. Laptops, logins, and lingering access can leave cracks in your defenses. These access gaps are one of the most overlooked cybersecurity risks for small businesses—and they can quickly lead to data exposure, account misuse, or even a breach.
Why Offboarding Is a Major Cybersecurity Risk
Even one forgotten login can be a gateway for trouble. Former employees may still have access to company emails, shared files, or cloud apps long after their departure. And if an account is compromised after they’ve left, your business may not notice until the damage is done.
A strong offboarding process isn’t just an HR formality—it’s a key part of your overall cybersecurity strategy. For Albuquerque businesses, where many teams are small and responsibilities overlap, it’s especially easy for access cleanup to slip through the cracks.
A Quick Offboarding Security Checklist
Before an employee’s final day (and definitely before returning any equipment), make sure these steps are completed:
- Disable all accounts immediately. Email, VPN, and remote access logins should be revoked the same day.
- Reassign or secure shared logins. Update passwords for shared accounts or tools that may have been accessed.
- Remove from collaboration tools. Disable access to Teams, Slack, Google Drive, Dropbox, or any other shared workspaces.
- Retrieve company-owned devices. Collect laptops, tablets, mobile phones, and hardware tokens.
- Audit third-party access. Check CRMs, marketing platforms, or vendor portals for any residual permissions.
Handling Personal Devices and BYOD Risks
If your business allows employees to use their own devices for work, offboarding becomes even more critical. Personal laptops and phones may still store synced company data, saved credentials, or cached files.
Your IT team—or managed service provider—should ensure company data is securely wiped from personal devices while respecting employee privacy. Implementing a mobile device management (MDM) policy can make this process faster, easier, and more consistent.
The Role of Managed IT in Securing Access
Consistent, reliable access management is difficult to maintain manually—especially as teams grow or change. That’s where a Managed IT Services provider like LDD Consulting can help. We work with Albuquerque businesses to automate and enforce access policies, ensuring accounts are created and removed correctly every time.
From onboarding to offboarding, a proactive IT partner helps your business stay protected, compliant, and ready for change without the stress.
Need help reviewing your access policies before year-end?
Schedule a quick security review with the LDD Consulting team—your trusted cybersecurity experts in Albuquerque—and close those access gaps before they become risks.