With so many businesses now housing assets and data online, cyber-attacks have come at a high cost if their networks are breached or corrupted. A Gartner survey revealed that 69% of employees have bypassed their organisation’s cybersecurity protocols in the past 12 months. Furthermore, 74% would bypass protocols if it helped them or their team achieve a business objective. These numbers underscore the need for a comprehensive approach to managing human risks. Unfortunately, it’s become apparent that all businesses should invest in some level of people-centric cyber security to protect their systems, data, and operations.
By fostering a culture of awareness through a people-centric approach to cybersecurity, your business can deflect any incoming threats to your data and assets. This article explores key strategies, including continuous education, phishing simulations, and building a workplace ready to defend against evolving threats.
Source: Gartner
The Importance of People-Centric Cybersecurity
Human error is the most significant vulnerability in today’s global cyber threat landscape (up to 80%, according to Stanford Research). Addressing the human risk and social engineering tactics are two vulnerable areas that can be better managed through a culture of cybersecurity awareness to improve the company’s overall resilience to any possible looming threat.
Human risk management focuses on identifying and responding to risks associated with human error that can lead to vulnerabilities in your business. Knowingly or unknowingly, employees can take actions that jeopardise your company’s security. These actions include clicking on phishing links, failing to follow security protocols or using weak passwords. By understanding and addressing these human risks, your business can significantly enhance its security posture.
Social engineering is a prevalent tactic used to exploit human vulnerabilities. These attacks rely on psychological manipulation to deceive individuals into divulging confidential information that may compromise security. Social engineering tactics can be highly sophisticated, making them easier to detect with proper training. Therefore, any business must provide employees with the tools to recognise and respond to social engineering attempts. Regular training sessions and simulated attacks should be carried out to reinforce vigilance.
Implementing Effective Cybersecurity Awareness Training
Continuous Education: Continuous cybersecurity education is essential for maintaining heightened security awareness among employees. Training programs should be updated regularly to reflect the latest threats and best practices.
Strong Passwords and Safe Sharing: A vital component of cybersecurity awareness is managing strong passwords. Employees should be trained to create complex passwords that combine letters, numbers, and special characters and to avoid using easily guessable information. Furthermore, passwords should never be shared openly. When sharing is necessary, secure platforms like 1Password should be used to protect passwords.
Physical Security: Physical security is often overlooked but is equally essential in a comprehensive cybersecurity strategy. Employees should be reminded to lock their laptops when leaving them unattended and to avoid leaving passwords written on sticky notes in plain sight. Securing physical devices helps prevent unauthorised access and protects sensitive information.
Network Security: Network security should be emphasised, particularly for remote employees. Using password-protected internet connections at home is essential, and employees should be discouraged from using public Wi-Fi networks, which are vulnerable to cybercriminals intercepting communications. Encouraging the use of virtual private networks (VPNs) can further secure data transmissions over potentially insecure networks.
Phishing Simulations and Remediation: Regular phishing simulations would increase your employees’ ability to recognise and respond to phishing attempts. These simulations provide real-time feedback, improving their ability to avoid phishing scams. It also pays to have effective phishing remediation strategies to ensure that incidents are managed, reducing the impact of attacks.
Building a Cybersecurity Culture
Creating a cybersecurity-aware culture starts with leadership. Business leaders must demonstrate their commitment to cybersecurity by setting the right example and promoting security best practices. This involves integrating cybersecurity into the organisation’s value system and encouraging employees to prioritise security daily. A strong cybersecurity culture reduces human errors and enhances the organisation’s overall security posture. Regular training, clear communication of policies, and fostering an environment where employees feel responsible for cybersecurity can significantly improve security awareness and behaviour.
Leveraging Technology for People-Centric Security
Advanced Threat Detection: Modern cybersecurity tools help organisations identify and prioritise threats targeting their employees. Some tools will provide a weighted composite score of all threats a person receives, allowing security teams to focus on the most significant risks.
Email Security and Filters: Email security is another crucial aspect of a people-centric cybersecurity strategy. While not foolproof, email filters can help reduce the volume of spam and phishing emails that reach employees’ inboxes. By filtering out suspicious and unwanted messages, email security tools can reduce the chances of employees inadvertently clicking on malicious links or attachments. However, since every filter is flawed, continuous education on identifying and reporting phishing attempts remains essential to complement these measures.
Conclusion
Adopting a people-centric approach to cybersecurity is now an essential investment for businesses. Understanding and addressing human risk through continuous education and awareness can significantly reduce vulnerabilities. Regular phishing simulations and robust remediation strategies ensure employees are better equipped to mitigate threats before they take hold of your business.
By tailoring cybersecurity training to specific roles and conducting regular exercises, businesses can effectively prepare their workforce to handle real-life threats. Building a strong, people-centric cybersecurity awareness culture, led by committed leadership would greatly strengthen resilience and protect operations from ever-evolving cyber threats.
Amidata can build up your cybersecurity strategy
Amidata offers comprehensive services to help build and deploy cybersecurity, including awareness training. Our end-to-end cybersecurity services focus on protecting your systems, data and operations from cyber-attacks by preventing and minimising threats. Amidata is offering a limited 20% discount on the Bronze Cyber assessment to anyone who mentions this article. Visit our Cybersecurity page for more details.
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