Cyber security awareness training is vital education that gives a company’s agents the knowledge they need to protect confidential information and the systems that house that information. “Agents” of the company can include either freelance contractors, full or part-time employees, and any other individuals who share, store, edit, or access data important to the business.
Cyber security awareness training courses have a single main objective, and that is to change behaviors that may amplify risk to the business. What type of behaviors? Clicking on a link or entering sensitive information in a suspicious webpage form are examples, but there are many other tactics used by bad actors that agents of the company need to be aware of.
The most effective cyber security awareness training classes use real-world phishing simulations and other web-based communication and reinforcement tools. Working in tandem with one-to-one education, they ensure company agents can recognize cyber threats like ransomware, phishing, spear phishing, social engineering, malware, and more.
Why is Cyber Security Awareness Training So Important?
Technology can play a huge role in protecting your business from bad actors, but technology alone doesn’t provide your organization with sufficient protection from cyber attacks and data breaches. Cyber security awareness training courses, programs, and campaigns can assist in making employees and agents of the company wise to the tactics of criminals who seek to undermine your security by working the ‘human factor’.
Having the right technology in place is important, but focusing on your people and making them aware of the methods bad actors use to gain access to secure data is the best defense against cyber criminals.
An Effective Security Policy Should be the Focus of Cyber Security Awareness Training
A security policy is a company document outlining how to protect the organization from threats, including cyber security threats, and how to handle adverse situations when they do occur. But having a comprehensive security policy in place is only half the battle.
Developing a security policy and training your employees to follow it should be a primary objective of any effective cyber security awareness campaign. It should include procedures to prevent and detect issues, as well as guidelines for conducting insider investigations. It should also spell out the potential consequences of a failure to follow the security policy.
Effective cyber security awareness training will often come back to this document, as it provides clear instructions on how to handle data and clear information on the consequences of failing to do so.
The document should outline the key items in the company that need to be protected. This might include the company’s internal network, its data, infrastructure, and more. It will also outline the potential threats to those items, and what employees can do to minimize or negate those threats. An effective security policy will also take into account the possibility that threats could include those from the inside, such as disgruntled employees stealing important information or an insider launching a virus on the company’s network.
The Bottom Line: Happen to the Problem Before it Happens to You
We all want to believe the best of others… our employees, our customers, and the community we serve. But the simple fact is that bad actors exist, and without preparing for adverse events, they could cause serious damage to your business, your data, and your reputation.
The experts at ARRUDA group have decades of experience in law enforcement and cyber security, and can help you develop policies and training to prevent the worst from happening. Give us a call today to find out how we can serve you and your organization.
