Why Cyber Security Awareness Education is Critical for Everyone

The threats are changing as fast as tech is – but a bit of education and training can go a long way towards staying ahead and making your organisation cyber-safe.

We hear the phrase “ignorance is bliss” a fair bit. That may be true for some things – but not for keeping your home or office safe from a fire. You probably agree knowing about fire dangers – identifying and minimising risks, removing hazards, and having a plan for what to do if there is a fire – is an important part of staying safe.

Many people think cyber security is a program you install on your computer systems, and the responsibility of only the IT department to look after. But just like fire safety is everyone’s responsibility – and not just firefighters – cyber security is important for everyone, too. Education and training is key.

What is security awareness education?

The phrase “security awareness education” sounds simple. But like how there’s a whole lot more to driver education that putting keys in a car’s ignition and pressing down on the pedals with your feet, there’s much more to security awareness than just its name.

Cyber security awareness education goes beyond learning not to open dodgy emails or click on suspicious links (though that’s a part of it). For starters, there’s your data – both that of your customers (such as if they have an account with you, so the data could be their credit card numbers and addresses among other things) and your own internal documents, like employee data, financial records, business processes, and other information.

There are a few things to consider with your data. How is this information stored? Is it in the cloud? Is it backed up? Who has access to this information? If there’s a breach, such as a phishing attempt or you discover data has potentially been stolen, what do you do in response to recover the data and make sure the damage doesn’t become worse and never happens again? These are all important parts of security awareness.

There are passwords. Do certain websites / files require passwords? Do laptops given by your organisation to staff also require passwords to access when they’re turned on? That’s security awareness, too.

Security awareness is also about behaviours. What sort of behaviours are considered “risky” for cyber security? How do you recognise if an email looks legit or not? If you work from home, who can see the screens on your devices, and potentially access information? Do you also use organisation-issued devices like laptops or smartphones for personal reasons, like online shopping or watching videos? Is non-work use of your organisation’s devices allowed? You guessed it: these are part of security awareness, as well.

It’s also important to remember security awareness is an ongoing process. The threats are ever-changing, so you need to keep up if you want to keep your organisation safe. Like a wolf looking for a shepherd to lower their guard, the bad guys are just waiting for you to look away so they can get into your systems and cause damage.

Why is security awareness and training so important?

As you adapt, so do the threats. It’s a difficult position to be in – hence why you need to be ahead of them. Security awareness can empower you and your staff to be proactive – making yourself less of a target in the first place. What this also means is you can be more efficient, and focus on what your business or organisation is really about.

Think about it this way: let’s say you’re the victim of a cyber attack, and someone breaks into your systems and steals data. To start, there’s the immediate need to stop the attack.

After the attack is stopped, you need to take steps to make sure it doesn’t happen again. This could mean sending around memos, having meetings and offering training for staff. If customer data was stolen, you’ll need to inform them – and there might be legal issues to deal with, not to mention serious damage to your organisation’s reputation.

None of those outcomes are desirable. They cost money, and they cost time – which can cost more money. By being proactive with continued security awareness and training, there’s less of a chance of being attacked and having to respond – but if you do have to respond, you’ll be able to more quickly.

The right awareness and training, the right way forward

Keeping up with all the threats out there is indeed a full-time job. Fortunately, there are several solutions that can help make this much easier for you – and integrate more seamlessly with your existing products, services, policies and procedures, reducing the feeling staff might have of being burdened with extra work to do.

NSP’s security solutions tick all these boxes – and are tailored specifically to your organisation’s needs. Beginning with a detailed security assessment that can identify weaknesses attackers might try to exploit – weaknesses you might not even know you had – they can then offer customised role training to empower employees with training programs that cater to their specific roles.

They also have interactive training to engage staff to keep them interested and invested in learning – in other words, keep them caring about cyber security and helping keep your organisation safe. It’s possible to track the progress of employees with NSP’s solutions, too.

Other products and services include cutting-edge digital tools harnessing artificial intelligence (AI) to help stay ahead of the threats – since AI-powered attacks are now a reality. All your data is backed up, too, in case something does go wrong.

A 24-hour security operations team of humans who are well-trained in cybersecurity and know your organisation means someone is also always on call when you need help – and actually can help you. You can also book a one-hour security consultation before committing to see what solutions might be best for you.

But beyond that, what NSP offers is peace of mind so you can focus on what your business or organisation is really all about. Smart security solutions are only truly “smart” when they work for you. If you’re looking to save time and money now and into the future while continuing to stay ahead of the ever-increasing number and sophistication of cyber threats, NSP’s solutions are like a continuous source of energy to keep you – and your staff who are using their newfound cyber security awareness and training – running at peak efficiency.