How to Create a Culture of Cybersecurity

How does your team treat cybersecurity? Do they engage in best practices on their own, or are they reactive, acting only after you ask them? Your business’s cybersecurity culture is determined by how your team treats security decisions when they’re on their own.

Why a Strong Cybersecurity Culture is Important

No matter how big or small your business, studies have shown that employees can be your weakest link when it comes to security. That’s why cyber criminals count on your team to be distracted and click on that innocent-looking email link, or unintentionally provide confidential information that can help them breach your network.

52% of businesses admit that employees are their biggest weakness in IT security, with their careless actions putting their business IT security strategy at risk. – Kaspersky/B2B International Survey

Creating a cybersecurity culture means educating your team about the threats and encouraging them to be diligent in your defense.

Here are five steps you can take to build your cybersecurity culture:

1. Change the Mindset: Security shouldn’t just fall on the shoulders of your IT staff. Make sure your team knows that security is everyone’s responsibility. All levels must adopt a complete buy-in to having cybersecurity as a top line priority.
2. Inspire Ownership: Take time to explain your initiatives and educate employees on the importance of their role. When your team feels a sense of ownership, they’ll work together to keep your business safe.
3. Provide Excellent Comprehensive Training: The better the training, the more willing your team will be to participate. Good training is fun, educational, and creates a positive sense that better security can happen with their help.
4. Be Consistent: The worst thing you can do is roll out an initiative once and never revisit it again. A culture of cybersecurity requires diligence, training, and reinforcement. Make the education ongoing and part of your onboarding process.
5. Keep the Conversation Going: Discussing cybersecurity on an ongoing basis and leveraging stories in the news can help reinforce best practices. Newsletters, email updates and meetings can create regular opportunities to discuss cybersecurity and fosters an environment that encourages questions and feedback.

Your team is always going to be your final line of defense against a cyberattack. A positive cybersecurity culture means they will feel empowered to act when they’re faced with a situation that could compromise your company.

Contact us today to learn how to keep your business protected from today’s cyber threats.