Preparing Your Employee With Cyber Security Training
In today's global market cyber security threats have the potential to debilitate corporations, firms and small businesses if these institutions aren't equipped with the necessary knowledge to combat these cyber crimes.
In a recent study conducted by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in conjunction with global consultancy McKinsey & Company, the world could loss $3 trillion by 2020 due to weak security measures. The numbers, while startling, highlight the continued need for top-notch software and employee training programs. There is much more that comes into play than putting up protective walls to try to eliminate the growing problems of cyber security breaches that have claimed major retailers such as Neiman Marcus and Target. There has to be a unified front within businesses that support the security infrastructure.
Social engineers are employing the same tactics that have for years, it is only that employees and unsuspecting victims are making the process much easier. The use of electronic devices such as laptops, tablets and smartphones are giving social engineers the opportunity to use our devices against us. BYOD programs when not implemented correctly can spell disaster for institutions hit with data breaches.
For example, if a professional is accessing sensitive company information over a cloud network in an airport using their free Wi-Fi, a malicious hacker can access hundreds if not thousands of files by simply crawling the person's computer through that hacked Wi-Fi network. Or consider a receptionist who is being bullied into providing information to an unknown source because they simply knew what words to say.
These individuals are computer savvy and behavioral savvy. They prey on the weak links in a company's hierarchy to fuel their need for sensitive information. Tactics such as spear-phishing give them authority over your assets from a single email attachment or link. Hackers don't even have to infiltrate your buildings walls to gain access to consumer credit card information and addresses.
It is your job as a merchant to ensure that your consumers' information is protected. Regulations and standards like PCI-DSS make sure that merchants are securing valuable information with best practices. Security awareness training programs provide employees and exec alike with techniques and protocols that when set in place can protect your company's most valuable assets: your money and your reputation.
With that in mind, one of most important aspects of securing your money and reputation is training your employees on the pitfalls and schemes that social engineers and computer hackers will employ to steal information right from under their noses. Your company's financial well-being begins and ends with employees and end-users. While there are several programs out there that offer tactics to prevent these sorts of attacks from happening, a successful internet security awareness training program is an essential tool that can be beneficial to every department and every person in your company.
Below are the six elements of a successful Internet Security Awareness Training Program:
Formulate a Security Policy. It should be easily accessible, that means given out at company meetings or available in the HR department. Every employee needs to read the document and sign it as an acknowledgment they understand the policy and will follow its standards. (Orientation may be the best time.)
Give every employee a mandatory (online) Security Awareness Course, with a clear deadline. It is vital that you detail the "whys" on the importance of its completion.
Make this Security Awareness Course a job requirement, not an option. It should be a part of their OVERALL training process or vetting process.
Test them even when they don't know you are testing them. "Repetition is the father of learning". This keeps them on their toes and acts a guide to your company for areas of improvement or decline. Phishing security tests, emails, software download updates and social engineering exercises are great ways to test your employees.
Never publicly indentify employees who have failed to meet the testing standards. Take it up with their department head or the HR department
Incentivize the process and reward low-failing employees quarterly. This will make them more likely to want to do well and will give you the results you are seeking.
Use visuals such as pictures, poster and screensavers. But be sure to change them out. Images that are left in place for extended periods of time become invisible to people. Send out newsletters and emails on "Security Tips and Hints". These can also be useful to for testing.
As the ferocity and frequency of cyber attacks continue companies are starting to invest heavily in IT cyber security measures. Cyber IT budgets are bursting at the seams, increasing from $65 million last year to an estimated $93 million by 2016. These numbers indicate the growing sense of pressure execs are feeling to ensure their assets are secure and the information on the consumers stay secure as well. The sophistication of hackers has put the entire world on alert.
Innovations in mobile, social media, company device policies and even data breaches in governments have forced the world to examine the need for properly trained personnel and quality software to thwart these cyber bullies in the their tracks.
In a recent study conducted by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in conjunction with global consultancy McKinsey & Company, the world could loss $3 trillion by 2020 due to weak security measures. The numbers, while startling, highlight the continued need for top-notch software and employee training programs. There is much more that comes into play than putting up protective walls to try to eliminate the growing problems of cyber security breaches that have claimed major retailers such as Neiman Marcus and Target. There has to be a unified front within businesses that support the security infrastructure.
Social engineers are employing the same tactics that have for years, it is only that employees and unsuspecting victims are making the process much easier. The use of electronic devices such as laptops, tablets and smartphones are giving social engineers the opportunity to use our devices against us. BYOD programs when not implemented correctly can spell disaster for institutions hit with data breaches.
For example, if a professional is accessing sensitive company information over a cloud network in an airport using their free Wi-Fi, a malicious hacker can access hundreds if not thousands of files by simply crawling the person's computer through that hacked Wi-Fi network. Or consider a receptionist who is being bullied into providing information to an unknown source because they simply knew what words to say.
These individuals are computer savvy and behavioral savvy. They prey on the weak links in a company's hierarchy to fuel their need for sensitive information. Tactics such as spear-phishing give them authority over your assets from a single email attachment or link. Hackers don't even have to infiltrate your buildings walls to gain access to consumer credit card information and addresses.
It is your job as a merchant to ensure that your consumers' information is protected. Regulations and standards like PCI-DSS make sure that merchants are securing valuable information with best practices. Security awareness training programs provide employees and exec alike with techniques and protocols that when set in place can protect your company's most valuable assets: your money and your reputation.
With that in mind, one of most important aspects of securing your money and reputation is training your employees on the pitfalls and schemes that social engineers and computer hackers will employ to steal information right from under their noses. Your company's financial well-being begins and ends with employees and end-users. While there are several programs out there that offer tactics to prevent these sorts of attacks from happening, a successful internet security awareness training program is an essential tool that can be beneficial to every department and every person in your company.
Below are the six elements of a successful Internet Security Awareness Training Program:
Formulate a Security Policy. It should be easily accessible, that means given out at company meetings or available in the HR department. Every employee needs to read the document and sign it as an acknowledgment they understand the policy and will follow its standards. (Orientation may be the best time.)
Give every employee a mandatory (online) Security Awareness Course, with a clear deadline. It is vital that you detail the "whys" on the importance of its completion.
Make this Security Awareness Course a job requirement, not an option. It should be a part of their OVERALL training process or vetting process.
Test them even when they don't know you are testing them. "Repetition is the father of learning". This keeps them on their toes and acts a guide to your company for areas of improvement or decline. Phishing security tests, emails, software download updates and social engineering exercises are great ways to test your employees.
Never publicly indentify employees who have failed to meet the testing standards. Take it up with their department head or the HR department
Incentivize the process and reward low-failing employees quarterly. This will make them more likely to want to do well and will give you the results you are seeking.
Use visuals such as pictures, poster and screensavers. But be sure to change them out. Images that are left in place for extended periods of time become invisible to people. Send out newsletters and emails on "Security Tips and Hints". These can also be useful to for testing.
As the ferocity and frequency of cyber attacks continue companies are starting to invest heavily in IT cyber security measures. Cyber IT budgets are bursting at the seams, increasing from $65 million last year to an estimated $93 million by 2016. These numbers indicate the growing sense of pressure execs are feeling to ensure their assets are secure and the information on the consumers stay secure as well. The sophistication of hackers has put the entire world on alert.
Innovations in mobile, social media, company device policies and even data breaches in governments have forced the world to examine the need for properly trained personnel and quality software to thwart these cyber bullies in the their tracks.
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