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Cybersecurity Awareness Training is an essential part of an effective cybersecurity defense. Are your staff members supporting your cybersecurity? Or putting it at risk?
Did you know that more than 90% of cybersecurity incidents can be traced back to human error?
The fact is that what you (and your staff) don’t know could hurt you. If your staff isn’t up to date on the latest cybercrime scams, then they’re putting your data at risk, simple as that.
The key to truly comprehensive cybersecurity is simple, yet often overlooked: the user.
The best cybersecurity technology and practices in the world can be undone by one staff member who doesn’t understand how to use them, or how to protect the data they work with.
With that in mind, let’s explore the more dangerous cybercrime threats you and your staff should be aware of, and what you can do to defend against them.
Phishing
Phishing is a method in which cybercriminals send fraudulent emails that appear to be from reputable sources in order to get recipients to reveal sensitive information and execute significant financial transfers.
Phishing attacks are mass emails that request confidential information or credentials under pretenses, link to malicious websites, or include malware as an attachment.
With only a surprisingly small amount of information, cybercriminals can convincingly pose as business members and superiors in order to persuade employees to give them money, data, or crucial information.
The average phishing attack costs businesses $1.6 million. The problem with the rising tide of cybercrime incidents is that you get desensitized to the whole thing. Case in point: the Alive Hospice in Nashville has reported that an employee’s email account was accessed by an unauthorized party in May 2019. When the suspicious activity was noted, they launched an investigation, discovering that the hackers had access to the account for two days.
The fact is that businesses aren’t learning to protect themselves, which is why the number of reported phishing attacks has gone up by 65% in the past few years.
Ransomware
In a ransomware attack, an unsuspecting user clicks on a seemingly safe link, or emailed attachment that appears to be a bill or other official document. Instead, the attachment installs a malicious software program (malware) onto the computer system that encrypts the data and holds it at ransom.
The user is then stuck without access to their data, and faced with paying the attacker a huge sum.
According to Coveware’s Q4 Ransomware Marketplace report:
Malicious Websites
Hackers can create fake websites that are set up to look like a real site, but the spelling of the URL or site name contains an error that is easily made by users. For example, an attacker may set up a site with the name “www.gooogle.com” instead of www.google.com.
Users who are not careful may type in an extra ‘o’ in the name and will land on the fake site. From here, the site will record all of the information that you enter into any text or password boxes, which the cybercriminal will then use against you.
Cybersecurity Awareness Training is by far the most effective way to defend your organization from phishing, ransomware, and other scams. This method recognizes how important the user is in your cybersecurity efforts.
A comprehensive cybersecurity training curriculum will train users to ask important questions about each and every email they receive:
The right training services will offer exercises, interactive programs, and even simulated phishing attacks to test your staff on a number of key areas:
At the end of the day, there is no perfect technological solution that will save you from phishing. It all comes down to you (and the other users at your business), and how capable you are at spotting a scam when it comes into your inbox.
Every organization knows that effective communications with co-workers and clients is crucial, but are you sure that your employees are practicing safe email and social media conduct?
Despite the antivirus software, firewall technologies and other IT security measures you may have in place, modern social engineering methods such as phishing circumvent those measures and prey directly on untrained and unaware staff members. The reality is that your employees may be very susceptible to the phishing emails that hit their inbox.
This is why it is so important to train your staff on how to recognize and stop social engineering attacks before they affect your business. With the help of Outsource IT Solutions Group our trusted partner KnowBe4, you can do just that.
How does KnowBe4 help you manage the daily threat of social engineering?
With our help, your staff will contribute to your cybersecurity, not compromise it.
Here’s how to get started: