This paper describes some of the issues related to maintaining a security policy for a company that has offices is multiple countries. Securing a company’s vital information is a challenge in one state, but having offices in different countries multiply challenges. One of the first concerns is the international aspect. If the main office is in the United States, it is quite probable that the satellite offices have different policies and procedures for securing their networks.

When securing a company’s network domestically, the task is daunting. Yet businesses that go global have more to worry about. The result of this is leaving the network open to intruders. That means the opportunity for a network to be exploited and/or exposed to malicious attacks because the security policies in the foreign countries will not be the same as the home office’s security policy in the United States. The task of securing the network globally is more complicated because of the following several factors.

One of these is the loss of control that a company based in the United States has if it has multiple satellite offices in other countries. A company loses its ability for the broadband connection to channel directly into the original businesses computer network. This means that security consultants are unable to regulate employees or contractors that are involved in network security at the satellite offices in other countries (SANS). Second, the configuration of a company’s network is difficult for most security personnel. It is important to understand the traffic patterns on the network system server, and this cannot be tracked or regulated by the company’s security personnel at the main office in the United States (SANS).

It is also important to remember that while the company located domestically can secure the network adequately, the personnel responsible for network security in other cell offices in other countries will invariably have policies in place that clash with the network security policies for the main office. It is very possible that some global satellite offices will take different approaches to perimeter defense, intrusion detection or the ability to ward off malicious attacks (Dewhurst, 2012).

It is a huge business challenge to manage a global organization. Global organizations are impacted by the shifting of markets from North America and Europe to India, Asia, and Africa (Dewhurst, 2012). The fastest growing companies will be in the emerging market sector. Emerging markets will increase by forty percent over the next 15 years (Dewhurst, 2012). Considering this, the technology used to coordinate international cooperation needs to be secured.

Becoming a global company means that the company will be exposed to many factors besides simply securing the company’s network in other countries. It requires the ability to understand the culture of the country in which the satellite office is situated. People from the West are proud of their culture, and so are the people who work for the satellite offices in other countries. A clash of cultures is bound to occur, and this effects the way personnel in the main office relate to those in the global offices.

An understanding of the different cultures is imperative to try to have some sort of coordination between the main and satellite offices (Dewhurst, 2012). Westerners are not the only ones who take pride in their culture. The different cultures in most of the emerging markets where businesses are finding themselves can be difficult to understand, but understanding is vital and necessary to the growth of the main company.

Personnel that are already working in the satellite offices may have procedures and practices in place that are vastly different than the practices and procedures of the office in the United States. The old adage: “that’s the way we do things here” is bound to play a key role in trying to coordinate security policies with the satellite offices. The key to protecting the network is cooperation and understanding how the current security policies and procedures in place in the satellite office (s) might benefit the company at large (Conklin, 2011).

Dealing with people who speak different languages from the satellite offices can be extremely frustrating. It may be a good idea to have someone within the main company in the United States to learn the dialect of the country in which the satellite office is located. Not only does this enhance communications with satellite offices, but it also fosters a feeling of respect and the ability to build a relationship. Both the satellite office and the main office can benefit from learning about and understanding each other’s culture because it paves the way towards coordinating a global security policy (Conklin, 2011).

This global security policy can be crafted with the input of the different personnel in the various satellite offices throughout the world. Everyone can learn from each other, and it is important to understand the way that international agencies secure their networks. It is possible that the way they do things might be better than the current network security procedures that originate from the main office. It is impossible for each satellite office to have the exact same procedures and policies in place for protecting a network because each location has a different set of risks that it must deal with in order to protect and secure the network. However, the task of communicating with network security managers or personnel in other countries is not insurmountable (Conklin, 2011). It is important try to learn the culture and norms of the society along with the language in order to foster mutual cooperation.