It seems like we are hearing more and more about cybersecurity and hacking attacks every year. There are countless popular corporations that have been victims of dangerous cyberattacks that have put many people’s personal and financial information at risk. Unfortunately, for most of these cases, the reason for these attacks is uneducated employees.

Hackers intentionally seek access to your information through employees, so proper education is crucial. Through no fault of their own, any single employee that isn’t completely educated is putting your network at risk. Employees are a businesses greatest asset, but also the greatest threat to cybersecurity. Make sure that any tips or information regarding current hacks are spread to all employees in your organization, not just the IT department. Setting up and following a strict communication plan regarding cybersecurity will help ensure that all departments are notifying the correct people in the right manner about any red flags that may come up.

Cybersecurity Threat Red Flags

– Unexplained errors
– Laptop/device running slowly
– Desktop changes not made by you
– Any emails requesting sensitive information

Check out more information about best practices regarding cybersecurity and mobile security!

The easiest way to safeguard any type of security is through passwords. A huge (and easy) part of training your employees about cybersecurity is training them about choosing the correct password. Make sure the password is hard enough so nobody guesses it but easy enough so it doesn’t have to be written down. These passwords are protecting all sorts of important data, double check that employees are aware what these passwords are actually protecting! It’s important that employees understand just how critical it is that they’re doing what they can to make sure this information stays safe.

Another thing that’s vital to your protection is constantly educating your employees how critical it is to be vigilant in protecting the company data. To simply learn about cybersecurity threats and to actually implement those steps are different, make sure the information is easy enough for your employees to digest. There are IT tools available that can be used in training of the staff. Some programs allow simulated phishing emails to be sent to see how your employees respond.

Lastly, listen! An employee should feel comfortable talking directly to you or the IT department if they even have a slight inkling that something isn’t right. Communication should be a top priority when it comes to cybersecurity attacks.

And, as always, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

THB TIP: Don’t forget to talk social! Create policy around using a company email address to sign up or use for any social media sites.

(Learn more about the importance of applying internet policies here)