Workplace scenarios

Scenario 1: Deadline on the 07:45 to Leeds

Sam has a client report due by mid-morning and boards a crowded train. The free onboard Wi-Fi pops up automatically, the seat behind him is occupied, and the report contains client names and fee details he needs to finish on the way.

**What good looks like:** Sam skips the train Wi-Fi and tethers to his phone's hotspot, connecting the company VPN out of habit. He fits his privacy screen filter, sits so nobody is directly behind his display, and leaves the most sensitive pages until he is somewhere private. When he goes to the buffet car, he locks the screen and takes the laptop with him rather than leaving it on the table.

Scenario 2: The laptop left in the taxi

After an evening client dinner, Priya realises her work laptop bag is still in the taxi she has just left. It is late, she feels foolish, and part of her wants to wait until morning in case the driver hands it in.

**What good looks like:** Priya reports the loss to IT the same evening, using the out-of-hours contact. IT remotely locks the device, revokes its access, and resets her credentials, and because the disk is encrypted, whoever has the laptop has hardware but no data. A loss reported within the hour is a minor event; the same loss reported days later could be a genuine breach. Nobody criticises her for the loss, only thanks her for the speed.

Scenario 3: Just emailing it home

Marcus wants to finish a spreadsheet of customer records this evening. The VPN feels slow, so he is tempted to email the file to his personal account and work on the family computer instead.

**What good looks like:** Marcus recognises that moving customer personal data to a personal account would take it outside the organisation's control, which could itself be a reportable data protection breach, however good his intentions. He works through the approved company storage on his work laptop, and when the VPN keeps struggling, he reports the problem to IT rather than inventing a workaround. The data stays where the organisation can protect and account for it.

Scenario 4: The HR call from the kitchen

Leila is about to join a video call about a sensitive disciplinary matter. Her partner is working at the kitchen table, a smart speaker sits on the counter, and her camera shows a whiteboard of client names behind her.

**What good looks like:** Leila moves to a room where she can close the door, puts on headphones so only her side of the call can be heard, and mutes the smart speaker for the duration. She checks what her camera shows and turns on a blurred background. Before sharing her screen, she closes unrelated windows, switches on do-not-disturb, and shares a single window rather than her whole desktop.