Arming Your Employees With Basic User Security Training Is Job One

From desktop to mobile to cloud–technology changes quickly and so do the threats and security measures designed to mitigate them. The best way to arm your staff is thru comprehensive online user security training. How do you teach what you don’t know? The truth is, you can’t. Luckily, there are great tools and services on the internet to help educate your staff to lessen the chances of an email-borne attack being successful. They offer continuing education as well as track and report your staffs’ efficacy at identifying and avoiding threats. If someone does click on bad links, the system tracks that so you can correct that user’s behavior.

The way security training works, is after setting up all your users in their system and the users taking some initial online training, the system automatically sends out suspicious emails trying to trick your users into giving up company or personal information. Then, it tracks the ‘clicks’ and analyzes the users’ email behavior. Good users don’t need any help, those that fall for the sample exploits get further training. During the course of the year, the managers get reporting to ensure the users’ knowledge stays effective.

We have met the enemy and he is us.  –Walt Kelly

There are internal and external threats to your network and as a business owner, you need to be aware of both. Internally, this means your employees. Many people look at users as the weakest link in the defense strategy, I prefer to call them the first line of defense.  For this reason, make sure your employees are knowledgeable enough to be your defenders and not unwitting agents in cybercrime against your company.

We find ourselves saying this often, but in IT it is always true: this is not a one and done fix! Employers need to continually train employees. Shockingly, the 2017 Verizon Data Breach Report reveals that user error caused 90% of successful network breaches, and 93% of them started with phishing.

Ongoing user security training – best practices for your business

You cannot afford to NOT have ongoing IT security training for your users. Cybercriminals increase their sophistication constantly. There could be an email in an employee’s inbox right now aimed at creating a breach. Also, training could meet required compliance for your industry. For example, you might be held accountable to the standards established by the agencies listed below. In fact, many businesses are governed by multiple entities.

  • Financial Industry Regulator Authority (FINRA),
  • General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR),
  • Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), or
  • Payment Card Industry data security standard (PCI).

If you want to be more efficient with your HR training, as an added bonus many vendors offer sexual harrassment online training at no additional charge. Don’t wait, call HD Tech today to discuss your user security training for all of your employees (562) 304-9330.

Learn the IT Terms of User Risks by clicking here.