A study by Indusface shows the most secure states for employees working remotely in 2025.
Remote work is still a prevalent practice for nearly one in five Americans and this number is expected to grow to 32.6 million over 2025.
As more employees work remotely, cybersecurity and internet reliability have become crucial considerations.
A new study by Indusface shows the most secure states for employees working remotely in 2025 by analyzing factors such as the number of scams per 10,000 residents, the cost of scams, and the average internet speed per state.
Research Highlights
- North Dakota is the most secure state for remote working,scoring 9/10, with fast internet speeds (210.37 Mbps download, 68.79 Mbps upload), low latency (26 ms), and a strongincome-to-expenses ratio (1.29)
- Mississippi and Nebraska tie for second place, both scoring 8.8/10. Mississippi has the lowest scam costs ($25.8 million), while Nebraska boasts a high income-to-expenses ratio (1.37)
- Rhode Island offers the fastest download speed in the top 10 (257.48 Mbps) but experienced the highest scam rates (31.4 per 10,000)
- Idaho has the highest scam rate in the top 10 (27.1 per 10,000) but has low scam costs ($26.8 million)
North Dakota
The Indusface research reveals North Dakota is the most secure state for remote workers in 2025, achieving a top secure score of 9.0/10. The Peace Garden State stands out for its low scam rate of 22.5 per 10,000 residents, reflecting a robust cybersecurity environment with fewer fraud risks and digital threats.
While its scam rate is slightly higher than neighboring South Dakota (21.5 per 10,000), North Dakota has better internet infrastructure, with a median download speed of 210.37 Mbps (11% faster than South Dakota) and a median upload speed of 68.79 Mbps (93.2% faster than South Dakota). These speeds ensure smooth and reliable online connectivity, a crucial factor for remote workers. Combined with a strong income-to-expenses ratio of 1.29, North Dakota offers both financial stability and a secure, efficient environment for remote workers in 2025.
In joint second place are Mississippi and Nebraska, scoring 8.8/10. Mississippi stands out with a low scam rate of 20 per 10,000 residents and has one of the lowest scam costs nationwide at $25.8 million, highlighting its strong cybersecurity environment and affordability. Nebraska, however, has a better internet infrastructure, with a median download speed of 199.43 Mbps (12.4% faster than Mississippi’s 177.39 Mbps) and a median upload speed of 40.79 Mbps (20% higher than Mississippi’s 50.98 Mbps). Additionally, Nebraska boasts a stronger income-to-expenses ratio of 1.37, compared to Mississippi’s 1.18, offering greater financial stability for home workers.
South Dakota is the fourth most secure state, scoring 8.7/10. Mount Rushmore State has a lower scam rate of 21.5 per 10,000 residents (20.7% lower than Idaho’s 27.1 per 10,000) and 31.5% lower than Rhode Island (31.4 per 10,000), suggesting it has a strong cybersecurity infrastructure. It also leads the top-ranking states in financial stability, boasting the highest income-to-expenses ratio of 1.39. While its internet speeds, including a median download speed of 189.22 Mbps and upload speed of 35.59 Mbps, are 10% and 48.2% lower than North Dakota’s speeds (210.37 Mbps download and 68.79 Mbps upload), its low latency of 26 ms ensures a reliable online connection.
Kentucky and Idaho are in joint eighth place, scoring 8.1/10. Kentucky has a lower scam rate of 24.9 per 10,000 residents, 8.1% lower than Idaho’s 27.1 per 10,000, reflecting slightly lower exposure to cyber threats. However, Kentucky has better internet download speed, with a median of 210.34 Mbps, 49.5% faster than Idaho’s 140.68 Mbps, making it ideal for remote workers reliant on fast connections. However, Idaho outperforms Kentucky in upload speed, with 29.37 Mbps, 23.6% faster than Kentucky’s 23.75 Mbps. Idaho is also more financially stable, with an income-to-expenses ratio of 1.28, 6.8% higherthan Kentucky’s 1.17.
Venky Sundar, Founder and President, Indusface, said: “Though the states above are prioritizing fraud prevention, wi-fi speed, and financial well-being to create optimal conditions for remote working, it has made employees more reliant on public Wi-Fi networks, which significantly increases the risk of malware infections. While the ideal approach is to avoid public Wi-Fi altogether, you can never be sure about how your remote employees will comply with these guidelines.
To minimise damage, I see two angles 1) endpoint security and 2) application security. In endpoint security, it is all about using effective antivirus software but pushing automatic updates to it. Keeping these measures up-to-date helps prevent malware from infiltrating employee devices.
“Application security is the second layer of defense. Let’s say that the endpoint or your employee’s computer does get compromised, the chance of malware infecting your company’s infrastructure is high. This is where putting your applications behind a WAAP becomes critical. That way, even in case of a compromise, the WAAP blocks attacks and protects the infrastructure and applications.
At the organisation’s end, access to critical systems should only be given to a select few and have MFA enabled. Along with that, test all systems extensively by using login credentials to ensure that there are no privilege escalation vulnerabilities. Finally, deploying a perimeter security solution such as a WAAP will ensure that any known vulnerabilities are not exploited by stopping attacks from infiltrating the networks.”