National Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Essential Tips and Tricks to Stay Safe Online
Cybersecurity is a topic that has become increasingly pervasive in today’s modern world. The need for safety and security measures — at the computing level — has never been greater, and the detriment of cyberattacks has grown exponentially at an equally rapid pace. With this in mind, it’s important for users, admins and stakeholders to understand the threats posed by online activity and how to stay safe. That’s why this month is dedicated to National Cybersecurity Awareness (NCSAM). This new initiative aims to help you identify potential security risks within your organization and take proactive steps to protect your network from harm. Let’s take a look at some of the tips you should keep in mind as you continue your efforts to stay safe online this NCSAM season.
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Don’t Ignore the Signs of a Possible Attack
The first step to staying safe online is recognizing when you might be in a compromising situation. You can’t fully protect your servers and networks until you know where the threats are coming from. That’s why it’s important to keep an eye out for red flags and notice any unusual activity that may indicate a cyber-attack.
These are just a few ways you can keep your finger on the pulse of your organization’s security posture:
- Are your servers and networks running smoothly? If so, that’s a great sign. If they’re experiencing slowdowns or problems, be sure to investigate as early as possible.
- Have threats been detected? If your organization is receiving spam, phishing emails or malware, investigate and take action to block the threats before they cause any major damage.
- Is your organization actively looking for ways to improve its cybersecurity posture? Awareness is one of the first steps to improvement. Make sure your organization’s culture encourages employees to report potential security threats and suspicious activity.
Educate Your Staff on Cybersecurity Practices
The more your internal team members understand cybersecurity risks, the easier it will be to spot potential threats and take action before they become problematic. Educating your staff on cybersecurity best practices can help prevent a wide range of issues, including data breaches and inappropriate internal behavior.
Following a few simple guidelines can prevent your team members from performing risky activities such as accessing confidential information, exposing your systems to external attackers or violating privacy laws.
- Ensure each member of your team understands the importance of cybersecurity responsibly.
- Let team members know when they’re part of a high-risk group. A targeted phishing email may have garnered the attention of only a few certain people. Having this information may help protect other members of your team from becoming victims.
- Teach team members how to spot and report instances of inappropriate behavior. Fostering a culture of reporting and accepting constructive criticism can help prevent mistakes that cause major issues.
- Maintain strict server access controls to prevent unauthorized users from accessing sensitive data.
Additionally, a mass notification system such as Regroup allows you to quickly and efficiently communicate with your entire team about possible threats by reaching them on the platform they prefer like their cell phones, their desktop computers, email and even through social media and your corporate messaging platform such as Microsoft Teams.
Create a Security Culture in Your Organization
Security is about more than just protecting your servers. It’s also about protecting your employees’ data, processes and information. Creating a culture that values security requires leadership from the top down. That’s why it’s so important to recognize cybersecurity as a top priority in all organizational decisions.
When it comes down to budgeting and planning, an extra dollar spent on cybersecurity can have a considerable impact on the overall success of an operation. This includes everything from hiring top talent, choosing the right technologies and staying up-to-date on best practices and industry standards. It’s important to remember that cybersecurity is not only a human factor but also a technological one. This means that you need to invest in the right technologies to keep your organization safe and compliant.
Stay Up-to-Date on Industry Trends and Standards
It’s essential for your organization and IT leads to keep an eye on the cybersecurity trends that are happening in the industry as a whole. This will help you stay up-to-date with best practices and standards that may be changing from one year to the next. It can be challenging to keep track of everything that’s happening in the cybersecurity world, so a diligent approach is crucial.
It can be even more challenging to remember all of the different organizations, associations and standards that may be relevant to your organization’s needs. Consider the following cybersecurity resources to stay up-to-date on trends, standards and best practices in the industry:
- The Security Newscast: This newsletter offers a daily recap of the latest cybersecurity news and events. You’ll receive a daily digest of information that can help you stay up-to-date on cybersecurity trends.
- ICS-CERT: This is a free organization that provides free cybersecurity information. You can use their website to find links to numerous cybersecurity standards, including those related to cloud computing.
- NIST: This federal agency acts as a go-to resource for information and resources related to cybersecurity best practices and standards.
- ISACA: This organization focuses on business risk management and cybersecurity initiatives. You can find a variety of information, including links to standards, on their website.
- W3C: This is a standards organization that has various cybersecurity standards and guidelines. You can use their website to stay informed of cybersecurity trends and best practices.
When your security is breached, however, you need to rely on a system that will continue to work despite power outages and cell tower overloads. Regroup mass notification will be there to let everyone know how to proceed during cyber-attacks and other emergencies and let you continue to send other types of procedural messages.
Hire Top Talent to Protect Your Organization
There are countless articles that suggest that hiring cybersecurity talent is one of the most important steps you can take to protect your organization. This is especially true when it comes to hiring security auditors. Security auditors have a helpful role to play in the overall cybersecurity equation. They can help your organization identify and solve the most pressing network, infrastructure and IT issues.
They will also help you stay informed of the latest trends and best practices. Security auditors can also help you implement strong password policies, strong encryption standards and strong server access controls. These are just a few of the many ways that the right security auditors can help you protect your organization.
Before hiring security auditors, it’s helpful to understand the role they play. You need to understand exactly what they do and how they can help. To do this, you can examine the duties and responsibilities of a security auditor and the qualifications required to get the job done.
Your Next Steps
Cybersecurity is a critical issue that requires constant attention. The more you understand the threats, the better equipped you will be to protect your organization. In addition, you must also stay current on the latest trends and best practices in the industry. You must also ensure that your internal team members are properly educated on cybersecurity practices. Finally, you must hire top-tier cybersecurity talent to protect your organization and implement emergency procedures that include a communication strategy to execute when a breach occurs.
These are just a few ways you can keep your organization safe in NCSAM season. Get in touch with us to better understand how Regroup can help keep your organization safe and connected.