The most rampant cybersecurity crime for the last five years according to the IC3 has been phishing emails.
How many phishing emails do you think target companies, and more specifically the employees within those companies through their work email? Do you think Bob in accounting can spot a phishing email? We sure hope so. But either way, it’s time to educate your employees, through an annual awareness training program.
If you’ve read this article, you have hopefully put in the hard work of getting your company’s information policies and procedures in place, creating a solid foundation for your company to build upon. But all that documentation won’t keep your company safe from a cybersecurity threat if your employees don’t know how to identify risks in both the physical and digital world.
What is Annual Awareness Training and Why is it Important?
In 2023 over 880,000 complaints were filed with the IC3 and $12.5 billion lost due to internet scams. In 2019 there were around 467,300 complaints with a loss of $3.5 billion. From these figures we see that though the complaints have nearly doubled over the last five years, the money lost due to these scams have over tripled.
Phishing emails are just one way your company information can be compromised, other tactics include malicious links, social engineering tactics, improper disposal of company documentation, and more.
Annual Cybersecurity Awareness Training keeps your employees sharp by teaching them how to implement your company’s documented policies and procedures as well as identify and mitigate cybersecurity threats lurking on the web and in their inboxes.
Educating your employees to identify, understand, and avoid security risks is what annual awareness training is all about. A security conscious workforce is effective in preventing data breaches, mitigating risks, safeguarding data, and ultimately protects your business’ reputation and finances.
How to Spot a Good Training Program.
Not all training programs are created equal, and just because a program checks off a compliance box, doesn’t mean it will educate your team or benefit your company.
Some training programs occur every six to eight months, others are packaged into a single presentation. If your company receives the same, cookie cutter presentation every year with content that isn’t up to date, run. This is an ever-changing industry, and hackers are always coming up with new and innovative ways to hone their craft and get past our best judgements. Up to date content on the latest breach methods and styles is crucial in maintaining a modern online awareness and work environment.
A good training program comes down to the quality of the content, its ability to be up to date with the latest industry threats, and the frequency it’s distributed to your employees.
A good annual training program not only gives your company an initial rundown of what security threats to look out for but also maintains continuous training throughout the year. It’s more than a one-off seminar or presentation, it’s a consistent practice to help your employees gain the knowledge and ability to mitigate a risk.
The Benefits from Awareness Training.
It may seem that awareness training is only about educating your company’s employees, which it is, but the bigger picture is about empowering your employees, so they understand their role in your company’s security, keeping your company’s finances and reputation safe.
By investing in a reputable training program that meets your company’s needs, you set your employees up to be a knowledgeable line of defence.
How 4:59’s Annual Awareness Training Program Helps Companies Like Yours
4:59 Consulting’s annual awareness program is part of a three-pronged approach to prepare your company to handle a security threat. The first prong is having your information security policies and procedures in place, this is the foundation of your company. The second is building upon that foundation and focuses on educating and training your employees through annual awareness training. The third prong is annual vulnerability assessment and pen testing for your company’s system, which we will discuss in a future article.
We believe the best cybersecurity awareness training program is consistent, provides quality content composed by industry professionals, is easily digestible, and adds a personal touch to help your employees navigate safely on the web both at work and at home.
Our training program covers topics including…
- Identifying Phishing Emails
- Mitigating Physical Security Breaches (such as malicious USBs)
- Implementing Primitive Measures to Keep Your Office Secure
- Online Awareness for Your Tweens and Teens
- And so much more!
Our program is tailored to your company’s unique needs and is offered as an annual presentation in person or digitally. This presentation is then followed up with mini lessons from the annual training to build your employees muscle memory and help your company stay vigilant in combatting cybersecurity risks. We provide annual awareness training for companies across industries including real estate, insurance, and finance and we help small to medium-sized businesses, like yours, no matter the industry.
