Employer branding has made the cut on the list of strategic business priorities for many…
Cyber attacks are rapidly on the rise. Want to cut your risk of attack? You need the right plan and the right experts.
When Covid hit in 2020, millions of us started working from home. Now, 9 out of 10 say they want to continue flexi-working in the future. Good news for work/life balance. Bad news for cyber security.
Remote workers tend to use different devices and software, can’t get IT help easily, and are much more likely to have their laptops stolen or lost. During the pandemic, there were almost 4,000 cyber attacks reported every day in the US – an 800% increase!
Cut the risk; now’s the time to assemble your cyber security A-Team.
The Tech Genius
An obvious first choice, your IT team will need to be on board from the start. Luckily, they get it. Around 46% of UK businesses have suffered a cyber attack and over 90% of cyber security breaches happen as a result of human error – IT colleagues know that even the most secure system is vulnerable. Get them to set out:
- What each segment of your employees needs to do to stay safe.
- How your people can get help if they suspect an issue.
- What the plan is for if/when the worst happens – how about setting up a regular drill?
The People Expert
According to the Symantec Threat report, 82% of data that was lost or stolen could have been prevented if the business had followed a simple internet security plan. Work with your HR and People teams to make sure your Cyber Security Policy is up to date and reflects the big trend to flexi-working. Once you have the policy in place, you’ll need to get creative with communicating it across the business. Check out these quick tips to up the cyber security comms engagement.
The Trainer
Only a fifth of businesses have sent their staff for internal or external cyber security training in the last 12 months. But with 29% of attacks involving stolen passwords, it’s clear that people need regular refreshers, even just to stay on top of the basics. Join forces with your L&D team to help employees understand why cyber security is important, how to look out for threats at home and in the office, and what to do if they think there’s an issue. Check the subjects for focus with The Tech Genius; here’s a starter list:
- Emails
- Password security
- Software updates
- Network security
- Shopping security
- Social media safety
- Protecting and backing up data
- Using smart devices safely
- Protecting data
The Security
Cyber attacks don’t always start with dodgy emails or rubbish passwords – they can start with a stolen computer. With more people mixing up their working patterns, make sure your Facilities team have a robust system set up to monitor who’s coming in and out of the office, including anyone from other companies – clients, cleaners, contractors, etc.
The Leaders
Employees are having more meetings than ever since we all started working from home. And they’re struggling. So, provide managers with 5-minute toolkits that they can integrate easily into their team meetings once a month to keep cyber security issues front of mind. Get in touch with Lucy McKerron for some examples.
We love it when a plan comes together.
If you’re talking cyber security and need help engaging people, then drop us a line.
