 employee security awareness training employee security awareness training hemraj tue 10142025 548 employee security awareness training laszlo s gonc submitted by hemraj on mon 10132025 626 laszlo s gonc cissp first senior fellow divihn cybersecurity center of excellence linkedin url linkedin perspectives tag security in the digital dna expert content laszlo sgonc sort by featured trending latest employee security awareness training laszlo sgonc security in the digital dna featured trending latest image can security awareness training change behavior and reduce cyber risk cios and cisos realize human error is perhaps the biggest weakness in any information security program attacks are becoming more frequent five industries health care manufacturing financial services transportation and government have been ranked as the most frequently attacked sectors in the world while many large enterprises have mature employee training programs incomplete employee training remains the main reason organizations are left vulnerable to phishing attacks this is the conclusion of proofpoint s fourth annual 2019 beyond the phish report here are four cybersecurity threats organizations should focus on during employee awareness training programs  top four 4 security threat topics for awareness training security threats body fontfamily arial helvetica sansserif fontsize 16px lineheight 16 color  margin 20px strong display block marginbottom 5px  phishing  at the enterprise level many organizations struggle because it is a complicated issue employees need to be trained to be skeptical about essentially everything only those links that have been received from known senders should be clicked upon however even that can be difficult to discern unauthorized application installation usage  another common security threat is posed by the installation of unauthorized applications this can be addressed by revoking administrative access for corporate devices and for most employees a training session explaining the importance of thirdparty credibility and authenticity can be enough to make employees aware of the threats posed by the installation of unauthorized applications password practices  guessing passwords is the easiest way of breaking into a system and has typically been the first trick up a hacker s sleeve often times default passwords for hardware and systems are not changed another practice that elevates risk is using the same password for different applications this can be addressed by spreading awareness about changing passwords and using strong passwords and the part they play in keeping the hackers at bay modernday application systems won t accept user passwords that don t meet minimal complex security requirements data leakage  data leakage can have serious consequences employees often transfer files between their personal computers and their corporate workstations or allow their family members to use their corporate devices at home and this can create some security loopholes address this issue through enforcement of a companywide policy prohibiting the transfer of data from corporate devices to personal ones software can be installed to address data loss prevention dlp even the most rigorously secure infrastructures can get compromised the threats listed above are some of the most common human vulnerabilities and it is of vital importance that precautionary awareness regarding them be made widespread six 6 critical components of a security awareness program security awareness program components body fontfamily arial helvetica sansserif fontsize 16px lineheight 16 color  margin 20px strong display block marginbottom 5px ol marginleft 20px  content  ensure you develop a program that employs multimedia content users learn from a variety of means at different levels and different paces utilizing a platform that allows delivery of a wide variety of content including gamification will help spread awareness of the program faster you can also match different content types to different roles in your organization executive support planning  ensure you have support from the top of the organization down security awareness programs require strong toneattop ensure you have a strategy and plan documented involve and communicate with your sponsor and stakeholders on a regular basis campaign support materials  a successful program should not be one and done treat it as a marketing endeavor vary the content and materials to keep users engaged and active testing  phishing simulations prompt users to either click a link report the phish or do nothing you want to give them an opportunity to report phishing attempts and help the organization increase resilience if they do fall for the phish it is recommended you implement remediation followup training doing nothing is not ideal as it leaves the potential threat out there and increases risk for others in the organization metrics reporting  keep your sponsor and stakeholders apprised of the progress of the security awareness training program you need to be able to demonstrate progress reporting is also useful for optimizing campaigns based on past results you want to be able to see what is working well and what can be improved upon surveys assessments  these tools can help you understand the attitudes of your organization and how well your program is resonating with your people so you can adapt think of it as a pulse check of subtle nuances that are different from metrics reporting such as opinions frame of mind etc summary effective education is imperative as cybercriminals continue targeting individuals making a peoplecentric security approach essential use security awareness training software that provides testing the phish testing software should provide performance reports so that you can measure improvements in employee behavior as training progresses  