As technology has developed with cloud computing, IoT devices, and other new software applications, organizations have, in turn, resulted in a larger attack surface that opens the door for more dangerous cyber-attacks. This has led organizations to develop a strong cybersecurity culture.
Cyber-attacks are becoming more sophisticated day by day. Almost one-third of US businesses are getting affected by a data breach. With this, it is likely to see the industry making cybersecurity as one of their top-most priorities. According to a report by ESG, 40% of the companies claim that cybersecurity is and will remain their priority in the next 12 months.
Business firms are heavily investing in cybersecurity, i.e.investment in technology. But don’t pay attention to the human side that remains the top cybersecurity risk for most organizations.
Cybercriminals most often perform attacks on an organization by using phishing techniques and other similar methods. Workers are clicking on phishing emails without detecting them; this is where cybersecurity investments need to be done. Working personnel are the ones with everyday access to most of the company’s computers and networks, which ultimately means that they should play an integral part in developing strength in the threat landscape. Because all this leads to the formation of a cybersecurity culture.
In this post, we’ll be discussing the signs that indicate an organization has a good cybersecurity culture. But, before getting into the tops, let’s first briefly explain what a cybersecurity culture is?
How a Cybersecurity Culture Benefits an Organization?
A cybersecurity culture in the workplace plays an essential role in the entire organization and its security posture. This culture is more than drafting policies and telling your employees they need to regularly change their passwords. The workers aren’t intentionally putting their organization at risk. All they need is guidance and training to prevent different types of cybercrimes.
For this reason, organizations need to work on developing their security culture. It includes spending some time explaining and raising awareness among their employees about potential cyber risks and their implications, imposing a safe cybersecurity process that will integrate easily with their daily work practices. Also, showing them how their behavior can assist or hinder the entire organization’s structure.
Secondly, a good cybersecurity culture creates stronger customer trust and establishes your brand loyalty. Clients don’t want to do business with any company they know has been breached and where their data is not safe. Boosting the company’s cybersecurity culture increases your brand’s reputation, and the costs of security training get covered in no time. Enhanced brand reputation brings new business ventures with clients who feel safe while working with a firm that has invested in the security of their staff, products, and solutions.
Cybersecurity Best Practices for 2020
There are few steps in nurturing a cybersecurity culture within the workplace, like educating employees, protecting passwords, etc. However, that’s the only beginning. The following mentioned below are the indicators that present a good cybersecurity culture.
Employees Think Twice Before Clicking on a Link
It is a reliable indicator. An organization with a robust data security culture will have few employees who click on links within phishing emails. It is something achieved through regular security awareness and training programs. Although it is not the only sign that matters, it’s still an excellent indicator of how security-conscious the staff is.
Share and Report Suspicious Emails
Employees in an organization possessing a strong security culture participate in protecting and securing the organization by every possible means. They report all unsolicited emails and phishing attacks whenever they see them, also they share it with the security staff among them who encourage them in such efforts.
They Won’t Go, Rogue,
The practical the security culture, the less the contractors, executives, staff, and others work go around the security policy. Like for instance, they’ll be less likely to copy data to vulnerable cloud services or removable storage devices.
Seek Help When Needed
Asking for help when required is another sign of a good cybersecurity culture. When using a new product or service, employees are more inclined and willing to run it with the help of security teams or IT staff. This shows that security teams are doing a tremendous job and are helping to develop secure solutions. Also, they are creating new tools and technology the workforce utilizes securely.
Security is Initiated Early into Projects
When creating new applications and services, the development teams seek to have security part of the process early on, especially in the design phase. However, it isn’t often because security teams find themselves reducing risks and dangers after systems are designed and built. But, companies with an influential cybersecurity culture don’t see themselves in such a situation.
Utilize Metrics to Monitor Post-Training Behaviors
Companies that keep track of its effectiveness also gives off an impression of a robust cybersecurity culture. By regular assessments and tests, they ensure that the training provided is useful and gives detailed knowledge to the employees. These metrics show how far you’ve come in developing the cybersecurity culture. You can assign negative points to those who don’t perform well; even you can mention the names of those who don’t perform well. This approach doesn’t work in all the work environments, but you can incorporate it if you haven’t not.
So, these are some of the indicators for a good cybersecurity culture. Not every organization is capable of establishing a security culture. There are some hurdles and problems too on this path. Now, let’s move forward and shed light on those challenges that an organization faces while deploying a security environment.
Challenges for Companies to Enforce Cybersecurity Culture
Two main reasons come up as an obstacle in creating a sustainable cybersecurity culture. However, when addressed, they can make the most significant positive impact.
Lack of Employee Back
Although many enterprises focus on developing cybersecurity awareness, not all individuals clearly understand their role in the company’s security environment. Typically knowledge runs high with the IT and security teams, but they are a small part of the picture. The lack of employees back is one of the reasons to instill a security culture in the workplace. A report published by CompTIA states, 50% of the employees, have never got any formal cybersecurity training. Thus, it is no surprise that most of them save passwords on their devices.
Lack of Management Buy-in
When we think of a cybersecurity culture, we need to include executive leadership with employees. All of them play a collaborative role in an organization’s security resilience. As leadership and management are excluded, the lack of buy-in from their side is a hurdle for a firm in need of a healthy security culture. Thus, training and programs that bring employees, managers, and executives all together are essential for opening up the dialog. Exchanging their experiences and investigating different threats provide better input to security awareness across various organization levels.
Final Takeaways
When you establish a workable cybersecurity culture in the workplace, employees learn their role in keeping the organization safe. They accept their responsibilities and help you to work quickly and efficiently to prevent any threats. The human factor might be the most vulnerable link in security practices. But you can reduce it by investing in the employees and making the lowest link as your strongest asset.
