If you work from home — whetheryou're a small-business owner or a freelancer — you know it'scrucial to keep your home office secure. Here are seven tips tosafeguard your data and ward off potential intruders, both onlineand off.

1. Insure your assets.

As soon as you make the decisionto work from home, you need to figure out your insurance situation.A homeowners policy may not cover all of yourbusiness-related assets,so check with your employer to make sure any work-owned equipmentis insured by the company's policy. If not, you may need topurchase supplemental coverage.

If you are a small-business ownerworking from home, you should look into getting a business ownerpolicy that covers yourequipment.

2. Install smart security.

Did you know more residentialburglaries occur duringthe day than at night? Prowlers assume homes will be vacant duringwork hours, but since yours won't be, it's especially importantthat you take proper security measures to keep yourselfsafe.

Many home security companies nowoffer smart security options that allow you to monitor activityfrom your smartphone. If a camera or motion sensor capturesanything unusual happening around your home, the system will notifyyou so you can see what's going on and alert the authorities ifneeded — all without leaving the safety of your office.

3. Have a plan for break-ins.

Even with a state-of-the-artsecurity system, break-ins are still a possibility you should beprepared for.

If you are at home during abreak-in, the best planof action is to stay calm, call 911 and quietly get to a safelocation — either outside the house or in a locked room. Theintruder could be armed, so do not draw attention toyourself.

After the break-in is over andyou've spoken with local authorities, contact your insurer to filea claim for any damaged or stolen items.

4. Encrypt your data.

Encryption software scrambles your data, making it unreadable toanyone without the encryption key. As such, these programs arecrucial for securing sensitive information.

PC users can purchaseencryptiontools likeCertainSafe for a monthly fee. You can choose to eitherencrypt your entire hard drive, individual files or files in bulk.For Mac users (operating on OS X Lion or a later update)FileVaultcomes pre-installed.

Aside from implementingencryption tools, you can also keep your data safe bypassword-protecting your computer and any other work-relateddevices, and signing out when you're not using them. It's a simpleyet effective additional safeguard.

5. Secure your internet connection.

One of the most important ways tokeep your business data safe is by using a secure and reliableinternet connection. Ifyou want to use a wireless connection, create a uniquename (SSID) and passwordfor your Wi-Fi network, and consider setting up a separate, dedicatedguest network for allnon-work activities to further limit access.

A virtual private network, orVPN, also helps to secure your connection against hackers. If youwork for a larger corporation, your employer may provide you with aVPN so you can access company portals from home. If your companydoesn't provide VPN access or if you're self-employed, you'll haveto sign up for the service on your own.

Some internet plans includeadditional security features, so check with your provider for moredetails on how to secure your connection.

6. Use a password manager.

It may be tempting to use thesame password for everything, but doing so makes it easy forhackers to access your information. Strong passwords can bedifficult to remember, though, which is why passwordmanagers likeLastPass or iCloud Keychaincome in handy.

These management tools help youcreate optimal passwords and store them for you. They also make iteasy for you to change passwords frequently.

7. Install programs sparingly.

One of the most common ways tocontract malware is by downloading corrupted files and programs.Some links contain viruses that could overhaul your entire systemor make you susceptible to a DDoSattack. To mitigate thisrisk, simply avoid downloading anything unless you are certain thesource is reliable.

Additionally, the most dangerousdownloads often come in the form of email attachments, so becautious before opening any file attachments from senders you don'tknow. And even if you do know the sender, be wary of anysuspicious-looking emails that ask for personal information orrequire attachment downloads.

Working from home can be great —it offers a lot more flexibility than a traditional office job. Andwhile there are some unique security vulnerabilities, if youimplement the safety measures outlined here, you'll be more securein no time.

Sage Singleton is a home and community safety expertfor SafeWise.She has written for a variety of audiences ranging from governmentsites to lifestyle magazines. She can be reached at [email protected].