Cyber security is becoming more and more important in the modern online world. People have to be hyper-vigilant of potential threats and know how to mitigate the risks associated with these threats. That being said, some are more aware than others. So how do you promote cyber security in the workplace with a range of online literacy?
You can promote cyber security awareness in the workplace in a few key ways:
- Implementing policies and procedures
- Running data handling training
- Use of security tools
- Communicating a disaster recovery plan
Read on to learn more about cyber security for businesses and how you can improve awareness of cyber security in your workplace.
How Do You Promote the Importance of Cyber Security for Business?
Cyber threats are increasing daily and becoming ever more sophisticated, which is why it is so important to ensure that your employees are trained and confident in matters of cyber security. This is especially important for businesses that handle sensitive information.
Why Cyber Security is Important
Cyber security awareness means that your employees will be able to identify a cyber threat and act appropriately to avoid risks. It includes a range of topics, including:
- Being aware of the latest security threats
- Dangers of clicking on potentially malicious links
- Dangers of downloading potentially dangerous attachments
- Disclosing sensitive information
- Password best practice
The goal of promoting cyber security in the workplace is to strengthen your organisation’s online security, building a more resilient business in the modern world. Investing in cyber awareness training will give you peace of mind that your employees can recognise and safely handle threats before they become a problem, but also know what to do, should the worst happen.
But how do you communicate the importance of this to employees? Younger and more technologically adept employees will likely already understand and know the basics, but how do you ensure all of your employees are on the same page?
Learn more about this below, or access the NCSC’s Cyber Security Board Toolkit.
How to Communicate This in the Workplace
It’s essential that your employees view cyber security as seriously as you do if you want to reap the benefits of it. Here are some of the top ways to improve cyber awareness and security in the workplace:
Policies and Procedures
Policies and procedures are essential for promoting cyber security across the workplace. They are the foundation of your online security culture and the bare minimum that employees should be doing. They are also useful for training new employees, compliance and day-to-day reference.
Examples of policies and procedures you should have in place include:
- Password policies
- Device usage policies
- Data handling policies
- Firewall rules
Data Handling Training
If your team handles data, they need to be aware of the cyber security risks associated with it. This is sensitive information and should be treated seriously. Some of the areas your employes should be aware of include:
- Data encryption
- Data destruction
- Secure remote access
- Wi-Fi network access
- Transfer/sending of data
Security Tools
Security tools can make all the difference when it comes to cyber security, therefore your team should be aware of and use some version of the following tools:
- Firewalls
- Anti-virus software
- Vulnerability scanning
- File Integrity Monitoring
Prepare Employees to Respond to a Crisis
It’s not enough that your employees know how to reduce the risks of cyber threats; they also need to know what to do if the worst happens. The success of recovery after a breach depends on communication. If you have a recovery plan, but nobody knows about it, your team will spend a lot of time scrambling and figuring out what to do.
The following considerations should be included in a disaster recovery plan:
- Recovery time objective
- Hardware and software inventory
- Identify personnel roles
- List of disaster recovery sites
- Remote storage of physical documents and storage media
- Disaster response procedures
- Identification of sensitive data
- Define a communication plan
- Physical facility needs
- Running disaster recovery drills
Learn more about cyber security for small businesses with the NCSC’s Small Business Guide.
Stay Up to Date With Cyber Security for Business With NEBRC
At NEBRC, we’re a police-led not-for-profit organisation that’s dedicated to your cyber security. We work closely with you to keep your data safe and reduce your risk of cyber attack.
Visit our website to find out more about our Network Vulnerability Assessments, or to find out about our Web app Vulnerability Assessment to protect your website too. Or, why not sign up for our Free Core Membership, designed to provide you with relevant resources and ongoing support to improve your resilience to cyber security threats.