Each October, the National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM) creates an overarching theme for its initiatives to enhance cybersecurity at home and in the workplace. The theme for 2019 is “Own IT. Secure IT. Protect IT.” NCSAM has a wealth of resources—available for free—to help leverage cybersecurity for prospects and existing customers. It is a great way to introduce unfamiliar clients with the topic and how it has become an (inter)national topic.
This post will focus on the Secure IT portion of the initiative
and paraphrase a bit from the resource guides available. Secure IT is broken
down into categories for exploration and to gain valuable insight into their
importance in a secure world:
Creating a strong password is an essential step to protecting
yourself online. Using long and complex passwords is one of the easiest ways to
defend yourself from cybercrime. No citizen is immune to cyber risk, but
#BeCyberSmart and you can minimize your chances of an incident.
A HOW-TO-GUIDE FOR MULTI-FACTOR AUTHENTICATION
Have you noticed how often security breaches, stolen data, and
identity theft are consistently front-page news these days? Perhaps you, or
someone you know, are a victim of cyber criminals who stole personal
information, banking credentials, or more. As these incidents become more
prevalent, you should consider using multi-factor authentication, also called
strong authentication, or two-factor authentication. This technology may
already be familiar to you, as many banking and financial institutions require
both a password and one of the following to log in: a call, email, or text
containing a code. By applying these principles of verification to more of your
personal accounts, such as email, social media, and more, you can better secure
your information and identity online!
5 WAYS TO BE CYBER SECURE AT WORK
Businesses face significant financial loss when a cyber attack
occurs. In 2018, the U.S. business sector had the largest number of data
breaches ever recorded: 571 breaches.1 Cybercriminals often rely on human
error—employees failing to install software patches or clicking on malicious
links—to gain access to systems. From the top leadership to the newest
employee, cybersecurity requires the vigilance of everyone to keep data, customers,
and capital safe and secure. #BeCyberSmart to connect with confidence and
support a culture of cybersecurity at your organization.
Phishing attacks use email or malicious websites to infect your
machine with malware and viruses in order to collect personal and financial
information. Cybercriminals attempt to lure users to click on a link or open an
attachment that infects their computers, creating vulnerability to attacks.
Phishing emails may appear to come from a real financial institution,
e-commerce site, government agency, or any other service, business, or
individual. The email may also request personal information such as account
numbers, passwords, or Social Security numbers. When users respond with the
information or click on a link, attackers use it to access users’ accounts.
The Internet touches almost all aspects of our daily lives. We
are able to shop, bank, connect with family and friends, and handle our medical
records all online. These activities require you to provide personally
identifiable information (PII) such as your name, date of birth, account
numbers, passwords, and location information. #BeCyberSmart when sharing
personal information online to reduce the risk of becoming a cybercrimes
victim.
Every topic above has its own corresponding document with tips
and information on how to prevent issues and which precautions to take when
dealing with security. A lot of customers assume they are secure until they are
not, then deal with the repercussions of a data breach. It is beneficial to
leverage this information for customers and show how this topic has national
attention and stress how it will not go away anytime soon.
Helpful links:
National
Initiative For Cybersecurity Careers And Studies (NICCS)