It’s 2022 and ‘cybersecurity awareness training’ has entered the lexicon for businesses of all sizes. That growing awareness is a result, largely, of highly publicised attacks involving human error.

Whilst many might have heard of the term ‘cybersecurity awareness training', understanding the fundamentals of cybersecurity awareness remains low for many.

That’s why we’ve put together this guide, wherein we answer the most frequently asked questions about cybersecurity awareness training procedures. Let’s get started!

Your biggest cybersecurity questions... Answered!

What is cybersecurity awareness training?

Put simply, cybersecurity awareness training aims to educate employees about a wide range of online threats that they will encounter, as well as how they can prevent such attacks that jeopardise their organisation's security.

90% of breaches occur as a result of human error, and through cybersecurity awareness training programmes you effectively reduce this risk - protecting your organisation and putting your workforce at the heart of your security.

Who is responsible for cybersecurity in your company?

Most organisations have a widespread misconception that CIOs and CISOs are the only people held accountable for cybersecurity; however, the fact that 90% of data breaches are caused by human error suggests otherwise.

Because it can happen to anyone, cybersecurity is the responsibility of the entire organisation and every employee. Indeed, the only way to build a truly secure organisation is to empower your employees to take ownership of their data security!

Why are employees targeted in cyber attacks?

Employees at all levels are frequently the main target of cyber attacks. Why? In this case, the simple answer is the most obvious one: without training, few employees see themselves as a target.

As such, most employees think quickly and carelessly about their data security. From there, it only takes one successful phishing attempt to get into your systems and wreak havoc on your data.

How can employees help to prevent cyber attacks?

Employees in your organisation can prevent cyber attacks in a variety of ways, from ensuring they use strong and secure passwords to being able to spot and stop phishing attacks.

Does working from home increase the risk of cyber-attacks?

Working from home is the new normal, but it’s not without its risks. A recent Tenable study found that 74% of organisations link recent business-impacting cyber attacks to remote work tech vulnerabilities. Other studies and reports on the practices of organisations adopting remote or hybrid work continue to shed light on cybersecurity concerns.

Whilst the pandemic is now largely behind us, almost half of the country were encouraged to work from home as a result of COVID-19, and many have never returned to the office.

Want to train your team on the risks of working from home? Our home working course gives your team everything they need to stay secure and thrive.

How can we protect remote employees from cyber-attacks?

Worryingly, the number of organisations using third-party cybersecurity tools has decreased by 10%, and the number of organisations using any form of cybersecurity monitoring has decreased by 6%. The real threat, however, stems from a lack of team training.

Cybersecurity awareness training is frequently overlooked as a critical component of any successful cyber attack mitigation strategy. In 2022, the importance of cybersecurity awareness cannot be overstated.

How can you encourage employees to complete their training?

For many years, the word "training" alone has made workers fearful, bringing to mind endless days in conference rooms, slide shows and dull speakers.

However, it’s not the only way. It isn’t that your employees are allergic to training, it’s that traditional training puts teams to sleep.

Instead, invest in training that foregrounds short-form content, entertaining courses and reinforcement. Only with that can you build a culture where teams actually look forward to training.

How can you promote cybersecurity awareness in the workplace?

Investing in cybersecurity awareness training is one thing, but these messages need to be reinforced within the workplace in the correct way.

Fear of repercussion is the leading reason why teams don’t report breaches or suspicious activity. When breaches don’t get reported they don’t get spotted until it’s too late, and the opportunity to correct mistakes passes by.

A positive reinforcement culture within a business means that when a mistake inevitably occurs, that person feels empowered to come forward and discuss it. The case can be shared with the team and even turned into a positive learning experience for everyone. After all, the best lessons are the ones we learn from real life.

What should cybersecurity training include?

Cybersecurity training in the workplace should take a holistic approach that addresses people, technology and skills. As human error is the leading cause of breaches, employees can be equipped with the knowledge to tackle a number of topics that should be included in a security awareness programme.

Security awareness training should include, but not be limited to:

How often should employees be trained in cybersecurity?

It's a widespread misconception that security training is complete as soon as staff have undergone it.

Training should be a continuous, low-level process. We recommend deploying at least one course to your teams per month, then reinforcing the lessons of that course with materials like wallpapers, blogs and emails.

That is why each one of our courses comes with a Reinforcement Pack, which contains everything you need to lock in knowledge and change cultures for good.

How long does cyber awareness training take?

Cybersecurity training needs to be a continuous process in order to change behaviours. Individual courses from some providers can take up to an hour to complete. However, short-form training has been proven to be the most effective type of training, which is why our courses are designed to be completed within 15 minutes.

Our training is continuously updated to keep employees up-to-date on the latest cyber attack techniques as risks develop, enabling them to quickly recognise dangers and take the necessary precautions to protect your company.

Ready to learn more about our training? Click here to learn about our cyber awareness training solutions.