The importance of training staff on cyber security

That’s why it’s important to make sure your staff are regularly trained on cyber safety, and, particularly, to make sure they’re wise to the latest forms of phishing attempts.

Did you know that 82% of all breaches involved a human element? What’s more, it was also found that 45% of all employees receive no training from their employers. Training your staff to recognise the hallmark signs of suspicious emails and texts as well as phishing websites can not only reduce the number of security incidents for your business, but can actually improve employee retention.

Why is cyber training important?

Cyber training keeps your staff up to date with how to prevent data breaches and phishing attacks, which in turn helps to keep your business’s finances and data safe from cybercriminals. It’s important to have regular training instead of annual, which may not be sufficient. Awareness messages, phishing simulations or micro-trainings can all help to keep cyber security at the forefront of your employees’ minds.

Having strong cyber security measures in place will also improve your reputation among your customers - a business that falls prey to a data breach may find itself losing customers who no longer wish to trust the business with their information.

You’ll also help to boost employee wellbeing, as employees will be able to use the skills they’ve learned in their personal lives, allowing them to avoid potentially stressful situations if they’re targeted by cybercriminals.

What types of cyber training are available?

The types of cyber training that will be best for you will depend on the type of business you operate and the learning styles of your employees. Some cyber training courses are little more than tick-box exercises, but it’s likely that you’ll want something more in-depth for the lessons to really be absorbed.

There are a variety of free and paid options available, and you’ll also want to decide on how regularly you want to undertake the training - is it something your employees will have to undertake every few months, with regular micro-testing throughout the year to keep the lessons they’ve learned fresh and memorable?

You can find a number of cyber security training options from the NCSC (National Cyber Security Centre) Certified Training scheme, which offers classroom and online training at a variety of skill levels.

Cyber insurance from Towergate

Even if you take all the possible steps to safeguard your business from cyber-attacks, sometimes that just isn’t enough. Even with the best security and training, you can still be targeted – that’s why it’s important to have cyber insurance.

To find out more about cyber insurance, give us a call on 0330 029 5626 or visit our dedicated cyber insurance page at https://www.towergateinsurance.co.uk/small-business/cyber-liability-insurance.

Consistent with our policy when giving comment and advice on a non-specific basis, we cannot assume legal responsibility for the accuracy of any particular statement. In the case of specific problems, we recommend that professional advice be sought.

About the author

Alison Wild BCom (Hons), FMAAT, MATT, Taxation Technician is a highly respected industry professional who has been working with and advising SMEs in areas including tax, pensions, insurance and marketing for over 25 years. She is a Fellow member of the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) and Association of Tax Technicians (ATT) and also has 20 years' experience as a residential landlord.

Consistent with our policy when giving comments and advice on a non-specific basis, we cannot assume legal responsibility for the accuracy of any particular statement. In the case of specific problems, we recommend that professional advice be sought.