Nine ways to get your staff on board with cyber security

Think you’ve got your cyber security covered? Think again…

This from Pure IT plus download a useful 9 point guide…

New strains of malware are constantly being discovered. That’s because as businesses of all sizes have stepped up their cyber security software and procedures; hackers have upped their game, too.

The cyber threat landscape is constantly evolving. So it’s imperative that you have an arsenal of weapons like firewalls, endpoint security, anti-virus software and email encryption to keep your data safe. But that’s only the start.

Everyone on board

If you’re going to stay ahead in the war against cyber criminals, it’s essential that everyone in your business who goes anywhere near a computer or device is on board. Your IT set up is only ever as strong as your weakest member of staff. And just one well-intentioned but badly trained person can undo all your hard work – and cost you a small fortune – in a matter of minutes.

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Despite the constantly growing risks, there are still plenty of people who see cyber security as a lot of fuss about nothing, or “not my problem”. And then there are those who struggle with anything vaguely techy and make silly little mistakes that can go on to cause huge problems for their business.

Smaller business, easier target?

Nearly half of all cyber attacks are targeted at businesses with 250 employees or less. Why? Because smaller businesses often think they’re not big or interesting enough for the hackers to target, so they don’t take it seriously. And just like all criminals, cyber baddies like to look for easy targets. They know that smaller businesses don’t always have much in the way of training budgets, which means lots of lovely ill-informed computer users to take advantage of.

The only way to keep your valuable data safe in 2020 is to promote a culture of cyber security awareness.

Engagement beats nagging

But let’s face it, it’s not easy. Getting everyone in your team to take cyber security seriously can feel like you’re fighting a losing battle. Like any new initiative,
there will undoubtedly be some resistance. Nagging rarely works, and adopting a heavy handed approach like threatening disciplinary action if they fail to comply is likely to make some staff members down tools altogether. But if your business is going to stay safe from cyber crime, you need to make sure that everyone – from the interns, up to senior executives and board members – are on the same page when it comes to cyber security.

When you meet a little bit of resistance (and you will!) think creatively about how to keep them engaged without feeling like they’re being nagged. Here are nine ways to change the way your employees think about cyber security and make it part of your business’s culture.

Click here to download Pure IT’s guide

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