All LinkedIn Articles are posted by Victor J. Quinones, Jr., CEO, Chairman, and Co-Founder at Virtual-Q. Original article posted here.
If you were to list off what you think are your top 10 security risks, what would you write down? Did your employees make the cut? Believe it or not, employees are usually one of the biggest vulnerabilities for businesses. Think about it like this, even if you had the best cybersecurity in the world, it would be rendered ineffective if your staff unwittingly opened a back door.
That’s why when implementing cybersecurity measures, it’s necessary to start by educating your workforce. Cybersecurity awareness training gives your staff the ability to recognize and avoid cyber threats when they pop up. But what exactly do your employees need to know?
What To Include in Awareness Training
Cybersecurity awareness training is nothing new. However, it used to be something that only people in your IT department needed to worry about. With the proliferation of cyber threats, it’s vital that all of your workers are properly educated on security best practices.
This training has come a long way in the last few years because it has to keep up with evolving threats. As a result, you may not know what to include in your own training program. If you want to turn one of your biggest security weaknesses into a strength, your awareness training should include:
Responsibility
When teaching your team about the dangers of cyber threats, don’t forget to emphasize the importance of data security and the responsibility every employee has to protect that data. Your staff has legal and regulatory obligations to keep company information safe from prying eyes.
Passwords and Multi-Factor Authentication
Whenever someone creates a new account, they need to do their best to create a strong password. Show your team examples of strong passwords that are cryptic and not easy to guess. In addition, tell them about multi-factor authentication and how it provides an extra layer of protection to their account.
Internet Use Policies
An easy way for an employee to compromise a network is by visiting websites they shouldn’t be using their work device for. Make it clear what kind of websites are acceptable to visit and which ones should be avoided. Remember, the clearer your policies are, the less confusion there will be.
Email Best Practices
Email is the main attack vector for most phishing scams and other cyberthreats. Explain to your team how hackers use social engineering to trick you into clicking links or opening suspicious files. Instruct them on methods they can use to spot dangerous spam. Finally, provide examples on what to do if they happen to run into an email they think is suspicious.
Make Cybersecurity Easy With Virtual-Q
Take cybersecurity to the next level with Virtual-Q. With our cybersecurity as a service, we take care of your security needs so you can have peace of mind. If you need a risk assessment, monitoring, or a compliance audit, we have you covered.
Contact us today to learn more about our services.
