Complacency in Security Awareness

Introduction

Having security awareness is an important thing for any business or organization, but becoming complacent with the security can be dangerous. It’s important to continually remind employees to be attentive to everything on their computers and network and always doubt what they see. The biggest weakness in any business’s cybersecurity and information security defenses is its employees. While organizations may have security policies in place, some employees may become complacent from seeing these policies and procedures so often.

The defenses that a business has in place are there for a reason, but it can be so common and seen so often that it can lose its meaning. While it might be there every time, it’s important that it isn’t forgotten. It can be tiring to always remain so vigilant when it comes to following these procedures, but remember, one click can cause an entire organization to stop functioning for an amount of time.

Bad actors are always looking for ways to break into a network to steal information or money. They are counting on employees to have become complacent with their cybersecurity policies so that they can get in more easily. One small click on a phishing email has shut down businesses in the past, so remaining aware and vigilant on cybersecurity and information security is crucial to operating a business.

What is Security Awareness?

Security awareness is the method of training employees on remaining steadfast against possible bad actors and malicious attacks. Businesses should have a security awareness program that continually inform and remind workers and employees that something could happen at any moment and to treat any and all forms of communication as suspicious.

This type of training can come in different forms. It is usually centered around social engineering, where the business can contact their employees under the guise of a bad actor. Using phishing, vishing, and smishing, the business or cybersecurity firm can test and evaluate employees based on their responses to these messages. Additionally, some cybersecurity firms can attach quizzes and educational material to these fake social engineering attacks.

There are other forms that can involve the cybersecurity firms more thoroughly as well. Some of these information security programs include seminars or presentations on crucial points of security. They can be onsite or remote and can be in the form of classes, electronic meetings, or web-based training. The more thorough it is, the more likely your employees will know how to spot a bad actor.

Security Complacency

When it comes to security awareness, many employees and personnel see these procedures in place every day. Some of them may not even know that the policies are working. However, there are certain things that employees see so much that it can become “just another thing” in their daily life. This is a dangerous area to be in, considering that complacency can cause a disruption of business.

“[EXTERNAL]” Emails

External emails are the main way that phishing gets through. Some businesses deal with many email communications, so the [EXTERNAL] tag that arrives on emails can become quite a common thing to see. Because of this, some employees may simply ignore the tag and treat it like a trusted email, especially if they were in contact with them before.

USB Devices

Flash memory is an important thing to have in a company, especially when it comes to transferring data a lot. It’s so easy to simply push a small plug or box to your computer that some people don’t give it a second thought. USB devices and flash devices are one of the easiest ways to install malware on a computer. It can automatically run dangerous scripts and programs if plugged in.

Delaying Updates

Work can be difficult and time-consuming for many people. As such, they try to avoid losing time in their day to seemingly insignificant messages their device might give them. Security updates and program updates can take quite a while to update sometimes, and because of this, some employees put off running these updates. There are many purposes to these updates, but one of the most important factors is that it can apply security patches against vulnerabilities or threats. Pushing these off can leave your computer vulnerable.

Password Reuse

Passwords are important keys to our data. They should be long and something only you would know, including numbers, capitalization, and special characters. However, not only do some people use basic, short passwords, they may also reuse this password over multiple platforms and locations. This sort of laziness can bring the downfall of a business. If a bad actor were to get one of these passwords, they may not only be able to hack your workplace, but your personal accounts as well.

Conclusion

It’s important to remain vigilant and continuously aware of cybersecurity and information security. Some bad actors rely on an employee forgetting to check something or letting them onto the premises without following them. These security policies and procedures are there for a reason, and thinking that the things in place are “good enough” can cause a lot of issues down the line.

Just because your workplace may have never been hacked doesn’t mean that it’s safe. These complacencies are dangerous and can cause an entire business to shut down, depending on the severity of the attack. Human error is one of the biggest flaws in a business’s security defenses, so it’s always a good idea to be up to date on cybersecurity policies and provide security awareness training to them.