In the IT security industry there is a statement that you hear again and again: "The weakest link in the chain of IT security is the human being."
The reason for the statement is that even the best technical solution for defending against malware or the most sophisticated IT security concept can be overturned by one or at least a few thoughtless clicks by a user. In fact, social engineering, and phishing in particular, is by far the largest attack vector against organizations. So it makes sense that the human factor must also be taken into account when improving safety.
In order to protect an organization from attacks in the best possible way, its members must be informed about topics such as IT security, common attack techniques and scenarios.
For this purpose, it is advisable to conduct regular IT security training courses on these topics.
With IT security training courses, it is important that the content picks up on the participants and does not overwhelm them.
Many employees only have superficial knowledge of IT topics and should therefore not be overwhelmed with technical terms or overly technical concepts in the course of IT security training. Content on IT security should therefore be explained in a way that is easy to understand and descriptive with examples, and the risks of cyber attacks should be presented in a comprehensible manner.
In order to reach the participants of the IT security training, examples from the private environment should also be used, because these are usually the easiest to understand.
The success of IT security training stands and falls with the prior sensitization of the participants. A previously increased interest and an intrinsic motivation to follow the content of the IT security training means that the content remains conscious for longer.
In order to ensure this IT security awareness, regular awareness-raising measures are available, for example as "door openers" for IT security training courses. In events such as lectures or live hacking, content from the context of IT security is presented and the viewer's interest in the topic is aroused.
Once such awareness has been raised, subsequent IT security training courses are followed much more closely and the learning success of the training measures is measurably better.
In order to continuously work on IT security-related training and employee awareness and to permanently increase awareness of IT security, it makes sense to coordinate the content of the IT security training and awareness and in a user awareness - Campaign plan. Topics and formats should be developed in advance, which can then be carried out over a defined period of time, eg a year.
If you would like further information on or support in planning and implementing such a user awareness campaign, please do not hesitate to contact us.
