Many New Jersey businesses and residents aren’t strangers to cyber breaches. In 2017, over four million in the Garden State were affected by the Equifax data breach. By 2018, the numbers had been reduced significantly to around 358,000 residents. But this doesn’t mean a decline in data theft; it just emphasizes the massive scale of the Equifax breach. The 2018 total is still more than double the number of individuals affected in 2016.
That’s why the Garden State is following California’s example and ramping up its efforts to protect people’s privacy. As a business owner in New Jersey, you should be able to protect not just your data but your customers’ as well.
Every year, statistics show that the majority of data breaches are due to human error, and cybercriminals continue to exploit this weakness. Despite this, many businesses still don’t provide adequate skills training for their staff. As a business owner, you need to invest not just on firewalls and anti-malware tools but also on continuous cybersecurity education and training for your employees. Here are seven reasons why:
#1 Complement your cybersecurity technologies
The technology defenses at your disposal all require people — those who’ll activate firewalls, update software and hardware, and acknowledge security warnings. You need trained staff to maximize your technologies.
#2 Develop a more security-focused company culture
Going beyond employees assigned to IT, you also need to provide continuous security training to your whole staff. Not only do you instill good security habits throughout your company, but you also communicate that security is important for everyone. And your staff becomes an additional layer of defense to thwart cyberattacks. The more cybersecurity measures you have, the better protected you are.
#3 Improve employees’ well-being, engagement, and empowerment
Training your employees means they’ll be more confident in doing their duties and following protocols. The more confident and engaged they are, the less they’ll fret about committing errors. Your employees will feel empowered.
#4 Prevent and reduce breaches, attacks, and downtime
In an ideal world, your employees and your cybersecurity measures are enough to prevent any breach from happening. But mistakes do happen, and even the best-laid plans often go awry. The best you can do is put systems in place to lessen the impacts of a breach, including the downtime that happens while repairs and investigations are done after the incident.
#5 Win the confidence of customers
When people know that you’ve made security a priority, they will more likely choose you because they’ll feel more confident and safe doing business with you. This is true not just for your clients but also for your business partners.
#6 Comply with regulations
More and more industries are imposing security measures on their companies in an effort to thwart cybercriminals. Meeting a regulatory requirement isn’t enough reason to introduce security awareness training to your employees. But it is a happy offshoot of training, and everyone, both internal staff and external customers, will feel more secure with you.
Now that we’ve established that cybersecurity training is essential to a company’s survival, what needs to be tackled during the training? The following topics are necessary to discuss:
- The many forms of cyberthreats – Employees need to know what threats are out there, both old and new. Cybercriminals are always looking for new ways to hack systems, so your staff should be updated with the latest.
- Password security – Passwords are the first line of defense from hackers. Employees should know the latest and best practices in coming up with strong passwords.
- Threat identification and reporting – Employees must be able to identify various threats, including malware, spam, phishing, social engineering, and more. And once they find telltale clues of a threat, they should be able to warn the proper personnel.
- Security guidelines for email, internet, and social media use – Criminals study people’s online and mobile behavior to find ways to bypass technology defenses. So that your employees don't expose your networks to attacks, train them on how to safely use email, the internet, and social media.
Training should make all your employees feel responsible and accountable for the company’s cybersecurity. Everyone should ensure your organization does not suffer an attack due to human error. To achieve that, training should be continuous and regularly updated to account for the ever-evolving threats.
Do you want to ramp up your staff’s cybersecurity awareness training? If your business is in or around Hanover, Morristown, and Madison, then you should partner with us. Online Computers offers training in many technological aspects, including cybersecurity and IT management. Don’t leave your security to chance; contact our experts today.
Or if you’re still on the fence about investing in cybersecurity, here’s a quick read on IT security — simply download our free eBook!
