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Training Employees on Cybersecurity Awareness

These days, one of the most effective training challenges any business faces is ensuring they protect the integrity of their computer systems and the sensitive data contained in those systems. The data is stark:

  • The cost of cybercrime is massive: It costs $2.9 million every minute, and the average cyberattack costs businesses $3.86 million.
  • The leading cost of cybercrime? Human error. Employees making mistakes are believed to be responsible for up to 95% of all cybercrimes.
  • The rate at which cybercrime is accelerating: An estimated 2,244 cybercrime occurs every day. One cybercrime occurs every 38 seconds.

Thankfully, organizations can protect their systems by training employees. Doing so can reduce the odds of making a massive business mistake that results in a cybercrime or data breach.

Employees Are Among the Most Common Causes of Cybersecurity Breaches

As noted above, human error is responsible for most data breaches and cybercrime. This often happens when an employee makes a mistake that gives an unauthorized user access to a computer system, enabling them to steal sensitive data.

There are many techniques hackers will use to access your security network. They include:

  • Phishing, in which a hacker will send an email that appears to be from a legitimate source. This email will almost always have some urgency. For example, it may say your network has been compromised and encourage you to click on a link to fix it. Users may then click on the link and give away their username and password, allowing a hacker to steal network credentials and gain access to the system.
  • Viruses or Trojans, in which individuals will install a malicious piece of code on a network, giving them access to the network.
  • Bait and Switch, in which a user clicks on what appears to be a legitimate advertising link, only to have that link direct users to a website that allows their personal information to be stolen. 

Proper Training and Data Are Needed

Fortunately, with the proper training, a business can learn how to stop cybercrime and ensure that their employees are trained to recognize cyber threats and prevent bad actors from accessing a computer system.

First: All businesses should develop a cybersecurity handbook. This handbook should outline potential threats and past instances where a business’ systems have been accessed. It should also explain security systems, how to use them, and the policies for accessing them. It should also contain information security standards, what websites cannot be accessed, and the guidelines about accessing the computer network when not in the office. It should also show how often passwords and other vital access credentials should be trained. Finally, it should have a “what if” section: What should someone do if they believe the network should be breached, and who — including customers — should be notified? 

Furthermore, your business should train employees to recognize how to use computer systems in the safest way possible, how to stop a cyber threat from accessing systems, and what to do if there is some cybersecurity issue or data breach. This training can take many forms. It should include:

  • How to recognize a phishing attack and what to do if you get one.
  • An overview of security systems and measures used by the company and how to operate those systems (if necessary).
  • What to do if a system has been breached.
  • How to recognize other security threats. 
  • What websites are most likely to contain malicious links, and what websites should be avoided.
  • Company policies for accessing networks from home or public spaces where public Wi-Fi may be more vulnerable to security threats. 

Finally, it is worth noting that this training should be regularly updated. The world of cybersecurity is constantly evolving, with new viruses, penetration methods, and phishing techniques developed regularly. A business and its employees must stay current on these potential threats. This will require frequent training to ensure that all activity is up to date.

How to Develop This Training

There are two potential ways to develop this training. First, you can attempt to do so on your own. You can use internet resources to try and ensure that you and your employees know the latest threats, the potential techniques to stop these threats, and how you can best train your employees in these methods. However, this can be a real challenge if you aren’t an expert in computer systems or security. After all, your area of expertise is whatever your business is, not cybersecurity.

 

This explains why businesses generally prefer to work with outside, expert consultants who fully understand best practices in the world of cybersecurity, how to train employees, and what the most effective training will look like. Outside experts are paid to ensure they are up to date on the latest cybersecurity threats and understand how to train employees and small businesses in these threats.

 

If you are interested in getting the latest training and software to protect your business and educate your employees on cybersecurity, reach out to vTECH io. At vTECH io, we know how to protect your organization, train your employees, and ensure that you use the latest tools and techniques to protect your business.

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6 Best Practices in Patching and Patch Management for Security

Patching and patch management is one of the most important and undervalued aspects of cybersecurity. In fact, 57% of cyberattack victims have stated that the application of a patch would have prevented the attack they were subject to. Worse still, the same study found that 34% of them knew about the vulnerability before the attack happened!

Here we will discuss six best practices for patching and patch management to help improve your organization’s security posture. Implementing these best practices will help you keep your software up to date and improve your organization’s security posture.

1. Take Inventory of Systems

Taking inventory of systems is one of the most important aspects of patching and patch management. By keeping track of all the systems in your network, you can ensure that every system is properly patched and up-to-date. This will help you avoid any potential security vulnerabilities that could be exploited by attackers.

In order to take inventory of systems, you need to have a system in place that can track all of the assets in your network. This system should be able to identify each asset, its location, and its purpose. Once you have this information, you can then start to create a patching schedule for each system.

One of the best ways to take inventory of systems is by using a network discovery tool. These tools can help you quickly and easily identify all of the assets in your network. They can also provide you with detailed information about each asset, including its operating system, software, and hardware. Once you have this information, you can then start to create a patching schedule for each system.

2. Determine Risk and Vulnerability

By understanding the risks and vulnerabilities present in your system, you can more effectively determine which patches are needed and how to deploy them.

There are a number of factors to consider when assessing risk and vulnerability.

  • Identify what assets are most important to your organization and which ones are most at risk. This will help you prioritize which patches should be applied first.
  • Understand the potential impact of each vulnerability. How severe could the consequences be if this particular vulnerability was exploited? Would it allow an attacker to gain access to sensitive data or systems? Could it result in a Denial of Service attack?
  • Consider the likelihood of each vulnerability being exploited. Is this a known vulnerability with publicly available exploit code? Is it a 0-day vulnerability? How easy would it be for an attacker to exploit this particular flaw?
  • Weigh the cost of patching against the risk and impact of not patching. In some cases, it may be more cost-effective to implement other security controls rather than deploy a patch.

3. Automate Patch Management

Automating patch management is undoubtedly one of the best practices in patching and patch management for security. By automating the process of identifying, downloading, and installing patches, administrators can ensure that all systems are up to date with the latest security fixes. This not only reduces the amount of time spent on patch management but also helps to improve security by ensuring that systems are less likely to be vulnerable to attack.

There are a number of different ways to automate patch management including using third-party tools,  scripts, or even integrating it into existing workflows such as Configuration Management or Systems Management. However, whichever approach is taken, there are a few key considerations that should be kept in mind in order to make sure that the process is as effective as possible.

4. Critical-Updates-First Approach

A critical-updates-first approach ensures that the most important patches are applied first before any other patches are considered. 

There are a few different types of patches that should be considered critical. These include security patches, stability patches, and performance patches.

  • Security patches are the most important type of patch, as they address vulnerabilities that could be exploited by attackers.
  • Stability patches fix issues that could cause system crashes or instability.
  • Performance patches improve the overall performance of the system.

There are a few different ways to implement a critical-updates-first approach. One option is to manually select the most critical patches and apply them first. Another option is to use a patch management tool that supports this approach. Patch management tools can automate the process of selecting and applying patches, making it easier to implement a critical-updates-first approach.

5. Evaluate Patches in a Test Environment

By testing patches in an isolated environment, organizations can ensure that the patches will not cause any negative impact on production systems before they are deployed. Additionally, testing patches in a test environment allows organizations to assess the effectiveness of the patch and confirm that it addresses the specific vulnerabilities that it is intended to fix.

Organizations should have a robust testing process in place that includes both automated and manual testing methods. Automated testing can help to quickly identify potential issues with a patch, while manual testing can provide a more in-depth analysis of how the patch will impact system functionality. Patch testing should be conducted on a regular basis to ensure that patches are being properly evaluated and that they will not cause any unexpected problems when deployed in production.

6. Establish A Disaster Recovery Process

Establishing a disaster recovery process can ensure that critical systems and data are recovered in the event of a major outage or disaster.

There are many factors to consider when establishing a disaster recovery process, but some of the most important include identifying critical systems and data, designing a backup and recovery plan, testing the plan regularly, and having a dedicated team in place to manage the process.

While no organization is immune to outages or disasters, those that have a well-defined disaster recovery process in place will be better prepared to minimize the impact of these events.

Protect Yourself with The Experts at vTECH io

While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to patch management, following these best practices can help you develop a process that works for your organization.

The cyber security experts at vCyberGuard from vTECH io can help you build and implement a patch management plan tailored specifically to your organization’s needs. Contact us today to get started!