We’re in October, which means that it’s officially Cybersecurity Awareness Month, an opportunity for people and organizations across the globe to learn more about the cybersecurity threat landscape and improve their capabilities to detect, respond to and protect against malicious security threats.
If you’re not sure how to get started, don’t fret! We’ve done the heavy lifting for you. Below, you’ll discover everything you need to know about this educational month, including free resources to help you plan your internal communications campaign.
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Why is Cybersecurity Awareness Month Important?
While security guys, IT teams and managed IT providers might live and breathe cybersecurity, security is an afterthought for most employees. With that in mind, cybersecurity awareness month is a wonderful way to draw your people’s attention to the importance of cybersecurity.
Doing so could be the difference between a thwarted attack or a successful data breach. Research shows that 90% of data breaches result from human error. These are instances where employees unintentionally trigger data loss or data theft. Perhaps they click on a phishing email attachment or forget to implement access permissions on a cloud folder.
No matter the reason, small errors like this can end up costing organizations big bucks. In fact, for a small or medium-sized business (SMB), the average cost of a breach is $108,000.
With so much to lose, educating your employees on good cyber hygiene is crucial. Cybersecurity awareness month is the perfect time to do it if you haven’t already.
Resources To Consider For Your Cybersecurity Awareness Month Initiative
Here are some free resources you can use to promote cybersecurity awareness month in your company.
Cyber Explore: The Fundamental of Cyber
Cyber Explore is an e-Learning program designed by America’s National Counterintelligence and Security Center. There are tons of modules to choose from, some of which you have to pay for.
For an introduction to the basics of cybersecurity, there’s a great free course called Cyber Explore – The Fundamentals. These modules offer a high-level overview about common security threats and how to protect yourself from them.
Department Of Health And Human Services Security Awareness Training
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is responsible for enforcing the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). HIPAA is a well-known data privacy law, which governs how healthcare organizations use, store and process patient data.
While HHS’ resources tend to be focused on securing personal health information (PHI), its materials on employee training are valuable for any organization, and are free to access.
Department of Defense (DoD) Cyber Exchange
The DoD Cyber Exchange has a treasure trove of resources that you can share with your employees to raise security awareness. You’ll notice there’s a lot of content on this website. We advise sharing a few courses with your people, rather than the whole lot, to avoid overwhelm.
Some courses we recommend starting with are the cyber awareness challenge, phishing awareness course and module on social networking and online identities.
Federal Virtual Training Environment (FedVTE)
The FedVTE was created by the US Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). This website is a one-stop shop for security and IT training.
One thing to note, though, is that the content offered by the FedVTE can get a little technical. This is because CISA created the website to help IT and security professionals gain more knowledge.
So, make sure to choose the courses you suggest to your employees carefully. Make sure they’re relevant and in language that your people will understand.
Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (CDSE)
The CDSE training website is another excellent website to share with your employees. What we love about this one, in particular, is the use of gamification to make training fun and engaging.
The CDSE also offers posters you can print and stick up around the office.
Sans Security Awareness Work-From-Home Deployment Kit
Of course, not every company has people in the office right now. If you fall into this category, you may want to consider the SANS Security Awareness Work-from-Home Deployment Kit, which was crafted specifically to empower remote workers to maintain security while working from home.
Wizer Security Awareness Platform
Wizer is a specialist online security training platform. You’ll need to purchase a subscription to access all of the content on Wizer, but there’s also a few free courses you can complete without needing to pay a thing.
Make Every Month Cybersecurity Awareness Month To Achieve The Best Possible Protection!
Cybersecurity Awareness Month is undoubtedly a great way to shine a spotlight on the importance of cybersecurity in your organization, but an effective security culture is one where security is front of mind for your employees 365 days a year!
Our Dallas Fort Worth IT experts help companies implement a multi-layered cybersecurity strategy that reduces risk of cybersecurity issues and increases alignment with compliance requirements.
So, secure your servers from malicious actors today using Cloudavize, the one-stop shop for all your IT needs. Reach us at (469) 250 1667 or through our contact form.
