October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month, a time during which The Solutions Team executives collaborate with other security industry leaders to raise fresh ideas and conversations around advancements in cybersecurity.
Within any business, cybersecurity is everyone’s job — but, sometimes, it can be difficult to get employees engaged around security and best practices. But with the escalating volume and frequency of global phishing and social engineering attacks, each employee’s decisions are more impactful than ever.
So, in celebration of Cybersecurity Awareness Month, here are some cybersecurity tips you may want to consider trying — to heighten employee awareness for the importance of security at your organization:
1. Quit re-using the same passwords.
Data breaches often leak user credentials, including passwords. This can be hugely damaging for people who reuse the same passwords across accounts — and each additional account amplifies your risk. Ask your employees to diversify their password portfolio – either on their own or with the aid of a password manager to create complex, unique passwords for each account.
2. Apply multi-factor authentication.
It may add an extra step to your employees’ login process, but it’s well worth the extra 2 seconds. This way, if someone gets a hold of your password, they won’t be able to access your accounts without access to your phone or other verification information.
3. Slow down.
We’re all busy. But encourage employees to slow down before they open an email and think twice before they click on a random link. It could mean the difference between a close call and a massive data breach for your business.
4. Unusual requests are red flags.
Phishing attacks now commonly use industry-specific terms, jargon, and client scenarios to foster a false sense of trust. Even if an email appears to come from someone you know and trust, be cautious of any message that asks you to do something that could put you or your organization at risk — even if it appears to come from your boss or an executive.
5. Revisit your breach prevention plan.
With ransomware attacks and data breaches on the rise, it’s important to ensure your breach prevention and response plan is up to date, and that everyone understands their role in preventing and responding to an incident. When evaluating your breach prevention plan, ask yourself: Are we just protecting our systems and networks, or are we protecting the data itself - everywhere it travels?
6. Bridge the gap between work and home.
By highlighting the risks of ransomware to employees’ personal as well as professional lives, you can convey the consequences of cyber-attacks in a more tangible way. When individuals understand the potential personal impacts of a data breach — such as the compromise of their own personal accounts — they’ll start to take security more seriously.
7. Approach security conversations with positivity.
There’s enough messaging around fear, uncertainty, and doubt in the cybersecurity world. We’ve found it’s far more effective to empower employees with simple tools, clear education, and positive messaging that gives them the confidence to do their jobs while protecting data.
8. Continue the cybersecurity conversation year-round, not just during this month.
The key to engaging your employees around cybersecurity is to make security a habit, an everyday part of your organization’s life. Just like any other habit, it’s about small, continuous shifts that add up to a big impact.
For more information on heightening cybersecurity awareness among your employee base, contact The Solutions Team at info@mysolutionsteam.com.
