Every year there are new hacking tools such as, viruses, spyware and malware leaving businesses more vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Back in the early 2000’s, the most frequent cyber-attacks were computer worms that propagated through email spamming. In the year 2021, we have seen a massive rise in ransomware attacks. Despite the current trends, businesses with a strong security culture significantly decrease the chance of falling victim to an attack
Benefits of a security culture
Organisational culture is a set of values shared by all employees that shape how employees approach subjects like security. The aim of the culture is to decrease the risk and likelihood of the business falling victim to a cyberattack. Cultured employees will understand the fundamentals of cyber security and the importance of remaining secure as a core value of a business.
Engaging employees, both with cyber security and the wider business is one of the most effective methods of increasing security, without needing to outlay significant investment.
Employee Education and Training
Most of a security culture is employee education and awareness of the basics for cybersecurity. Businesses cannot expect personnel to report a cyber threat if they do not understand the danger, or best practices.
When educating and training staff it should be a constant process to ensure employees retain the information. Training should include common attack methods and how to recognise them, the likely cost of a data breach and the procedures to follow if employees believe they have detected an attack attempt or breaches of policy.
Regular Tests
Regular tests are the best practice to ensure employee training is being consumed and retained properly. A good example is monthly or quarterly quizzes to test employee’s knowledge and remind them of the importance of cyber security. Additionally, organisations are able to simulate phishing attacks to show if employees would fall victim to a real cyber-attack.
Lastly, for a more comprehensive test of overall network security, penetration testers can be hired to see if they can gain access to a network using real hacking and social engineering techniques.
Leverage Technology
Even with extensive training, at some point employees will make a mistake and your business may be targeted with a complex and difficult to detect attack. For this reason, it is vital to have the right technology in place to stop phishing and malicious mail.
Mimecast uses AI to block suspicious emails and has cloud-based web protection at the DNS level to stop malware. It is possible to run security awareness training through Mimecast to continue to build a security culture. Also If an employee falls for a ransomware attack, Acronis Cyber-Protect can automatically revert to a clean version of the system. This will decrease downtime and avoid data loss.
Rewards
The rewards for building a strong security culture within a business are endless, but this takes time and planning. In the long run, employees who understand the importance of security, significantly decrease the risk and likelihood of a cyber-attack. If you want more information on how to build a security culture, talk to us today.
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