IT Best Practices Emergency: Company Cyber Security Training

Summary: This 3-minute article highlights why SMB employees must be trained in standardized cyber security best practices. To protect your private data, everyone must be on the same page. Contact DIGIGUARD CYBER SECURITY at 833-33-CYBER (833-332-9237) or visit www.DIGIGUARDsecurity.com to discuss how your employees can protect your business from cyberattacks.

Data breaches of all kinds are in the news all the time. However, the expanded remote access target landscape for hackers requires a new level of diligence to keep up with and defend against cyberattacks. From smart device hacks to network attacks, cybercrime is everywhere.

Company Cyber Security Training

Small to midsized businesses need to evaluate their cyber vulnerabilities and understand what protection is required. However, SMBs must also engage in ongoing employee training in IT best practices. Employees must understand the importance of everyone being on the same page to protect their company’s data and have a clear sense of the deadly consequences of not following cyber security protocols. Information security awareness must be company-wide.

Fortunately, we now have many resources available to protect your organization’s private business data. IT experts stay on top of new cybercrime. In addition, software developers continue to design programs for network security and security fixes for other applications. However, before hiring IT professionals to fully train your staff on employee security policy and lock down your network, here are some overall approaches to cyber security training and establishing protocols:

• Make Cyber Security a Company Priority – What is the point of having a unique product or service if hackers can easily steal it? Protecting your SMB from cyberattacks must now be a top-line budget item. Your entire organization must embrace robust and continuous network protection. A company-wide cyber philosophy must be part of your corporate culture, from C-level executives to entry-level new hires.
• Invest Time and Money in Ongoing Best Practices Training – Initial Cyber security training should begin by hiring IT professionals to create a comprehensive training plan. However, cyber security training is not a “one and done” scenario. It must be updated and practiced regularly. You might wish to conduct monthly practice sessions in which employees are challenged to recognize suspicious emails, domains attachments and links in a classroom-style setting. Cyberthreat awareness is of paramount importance to fully protect your SMB’s data. Some training exercises should include:
  • How to recognize social engineering and phishing attacks.
  • How to know if a domain is authentic.
  • How to check if an email is not from a trusted source.
  • Knowledge of the symptoms of a compromised network at the user level.
• Create a Detailed Cyber Security Best Practices Document – An ever-expanding, comprehensive digital resource should be created and available to all employees to guide their cyber awareness and protect the company network. It must help them when they are working alone and aren’t sure if an email or a link is safe to open. Also, it must repeatedly stress how important it is to “think before you click.”
• Ask Upper Management to Take the Lead on Security – If top executives don’t follow the protocols you set up, why should everyone else? Your leaders must walk the talk.
• Teach Safe Password Management – Safe password management is a critical component of cyber security in any setting. Sloppy control of creating and saving passwords opens the door for cybercriminals to breach your data. Passwords must be unique, complex and saved correctly. A hacker stealing an employee’s credentials could easily lead to a system-wide cyberattack. And if the attack goes unnoticed, it could put your company out of business.
• Incorporate Employ Security Policy into New Employee Training – On the first day new employees start working, they must be trained to follow your security protocols. They should not be allowed to log on to a computer and do anything until they have been fully trained and tested.
• Schedule Refresher Sessions With Cyber Threat Updates – Cybercrime never stops evolving. Therefore, regularly scheduled, mandatory cyber training sessions must be conducted to keep everyone vigilant in protecting your company’s network.

Unfortunately, the process of cyber protection has become too complex for amateurs. Many essential considerations are far beyond the expertise of the most tech-savvy users. SMBs should invest in professional IT security consulting services to conduct a cyber risk analysis and help you create the cyber security protocols that work best for your company.

DIGIGUARD Cyber Security is an IT security service specializing in cyber threat protection for small to midsized companies. They can evaluate your system, recommend best practices and help train your employees. Also, DIGIGUARD can provide your SMB with powerful layers of security, making it more difficult for hackers to access your network. Therefore, your company’s data will be safer and less likely to be breached in the face of our expanding mobile work environment. Solid prevention and relentless monitoring, in tandem with swift mitigating responses to an attack, are essential protections in the face of escalating cyber criminality.

DIGIGUARD uses state-of-the-art proactive ransomware defense tools and has a wide array of solutions for small and midsized businesses to guard against the many forms of malware attacks and other network data breaches. In addition, they are cyber security experts who can ensure your confidential business and banking data has the best protection possible. Also, they can help you defend against or recover from cyberattacks and provide solutions that offer early detection of potential cyber threats before they happen. Furthermore, DIGIGUARD can assess your cyber vulnerability and work with you to design your business' best network and data protection solutions.

Contact DIGIGUARD CYBER SECURITY at 833-33-CYBER (833-332-9237) or visit www.DIGIGUARDsecurity.com to explore prevention strategies available to guard against deadly cyberattacks and how they can train your staff to protect your company’s hard-earned data.