The most innocent of mistakes online can have the most disastrous effects on your business. From just one accidental click, your staff – from trainees to heads of departments – can all cause a cybersecurity nightmare.
Here are some tips on how to ensure your staff are aware of the dangers faced.
Don’t blame your employees
Everyone makes mistakes. While accidents can have serious consequences for your business, that doesn’t stop them from being accidents.
Businesses should have plans in place to ensure staff are well-versed in the dangers posed online. Every business has a responsibility to keep its employees trained on keeping its network and data safe.
If your staff aren’t asking questions when faced with something online, then your training hasn’t given them the answers.
Think before you click
Many of the most effective cyberattacks rely purely on human error. They tend to be the most simple, too.
Phishing attacks are among the most common, and regularly come via an email with very subtle differences to their genuine counterparts. It could be just one letter’s difference in the email address, or a bogus link.
Staff should be trained to stop and think when faced with an unexpected email or website link. A few seconds to double-check the domain, to hover their mouse over a link to reveal its destination, or to ask someone for help can prevent disaster.
The importance of passwords
Repeated or easy-to-crack passwords should never be tolerated in a business.
Staff should be trained to ensure their passwords are a minimum of eight characters long and include a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols.
Likewise, they should be encouraged to never reuse passwords across any of their accounts – and ensure they are changed regularly through reminders.
What’s more, you could invest in a password manager to help save your staff the hassle of remembering numerous passwords.
Encourage conversation
Cybersecurity is an ever-changing field as hackers and their tactics evolve. Businesses and their IT departments should stay in the loop with the latest trends and ensure that information is passed down.
Keep your employees up to date on the latest developments affecting cybersecurity. This doesn’t have to be through an uninspiring newsletter – a healthy reminder in a meeting or a piece on a bulletin board will all help raise awareness.
A business is only truly secure when its staff are aware of the dangers they face, so don’t be afraid to share any tips your IT provider may have.
Cybersecurity doesn’t end in the office
The pandemic has made agile working an ever-prevalent feature of numerous industries – and it can be hard to keep track of any security slip-ups from afar.
Make sure your staff are aware of the dangers they face online, be it in the office, in their homes or out and about on client meetings.
The same applies for any devices you give to your staff. A work phone is an extension of your business and as such should be treated in the same way by staff as their computer.
Questions?
At SMY IT Services, we understand cybersecurity can be a minefield. That’s why our expert team are constantly monitoring the latest developments to keep our clients safe.
Our aim is to help your business grow through technology – and no company can develop when it’s vulnerable to criminals.
Looking to protect your and your client’s data? Contact our team for support.
The service that we receive is of the highest standard and we are completely happy that we have made the right decision to move our business to SMT IT Services.
- Chris Addis -