Cybersecurity Success Starts With a Strong Security Culture

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A robust cyber defense is based on more than just implementing an array of advanced solutions. A strong cybersecurity culture is the bedrock upon which any defensive plan is built. Building a resilient defense requires a company-wide culture where every employee, from entry-level staff to leadership, understands their role in protecting sensitive data and systems. As cyberthreats continue to escalate in both frequency and severity, Cybersecurity Awareness Month offers a timely reminder for internal IT teams and managed service providers (MSPs) to take stock of the cybersecurity cultures they steward and find ways to strengthen them to foster cyber resilience.

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A strong cybersecurity culture isn’t just a nice-to-have – it’s a must-have

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Building a strong cybersecurity culture has become essential for businesses looking to improve their cyber resilience in an uncertain threat landscape. That culture starts with empowering a company’s first line of defense against cyberthreats: employees. In a business with a healthy cybersecurity culture, employees understand that cybersecurity is everyone’s responsibility, not just IT’s. Unfortunately, about 40% of workers believe only executives and security teams are responsible for security. Employee understanding of best practices and correct procedures is the bedrock of a culture of security. Cybersecurity awareness training is the ideal way to dispel the myth that cybersecurity is just an IT problem.

A company with a healthy cybersecurity culture gains numerous benefits, such as a stronger defense against cyberattacks, a lower likelihood of a data breach, quicker recovery from incidents and better compliance. However, establishing and maintaining a thriving cybersecurity culture can be challenging. Writing and enforcing security and device policies, setting training schedules and making incident response preparations are critical elements of a strong defense that require significant expertise – and that’s where MSPs and other IT professionals come into the picture.

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MSPs play a key role in building a cybersecurity culture

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Here’s how MSPs and other IT professionals can help businesses not only implement the right technologies but also establish a cybersecurity culture that strengthens their cyber resilience.

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Providing expert guidance and training

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One of the most valuable roles that MSPs and IT professionals play in helping businesses build a strong security culture is educating executives and employees about cybersecurity risks and the importance of a security-first mindset. This includes:

• Delivering tailored security awareness training: Teaching employees how to identify and avoid common cyberthreats is the cornerstone of building a cybersecurity culture. Simulated phishing attacks and interactive training sessions help employees stay vigilant. According to Forbes, a solid training program can reduce cybersecurity risks from a staggering 60% to as low as 10%.
• Customizing best practices: Every business is different, meaning each faces a unique set of cyber-risks. IT professionals can provide customized cybersecurity strategies that consider all relevant factors, ensuring that the business takes the right precautions to avoid cyber trouble.
• Eliminating fears and bad practices: When employees fear reporting mistakes or suspicious activity, problems go undetected and eventually evolve into disasters. An estimated 50% of employees are afraid to report their cybersecurity errors because they fear job loss. Make sure that executives and managers understand that punishing employees for cybersecurity blunders is a dangerous practice.   

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Building leadership support for cybersecurity

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Cybersecurity culture starts from the top. When leadership embraces cybersecurity as a critical business priority, it sends a powerful message to employees. Unfortunately, making that happen can be a daunting task. MSPs and IT professionals can help establish a foundation for security through:

• Educating executives about cyber-risks: IT professionals can educate decision-makers about the importance of cybersecurity for a company’s success by explaining how cyber-risks like a data breach threaten the entire organization, including its profits and customer relationships. This approach encourages leaders to view cybersecurity as a business enabler rather than a cost center.
• Recruiting leadership to the cybersecurity team: Educating budget controllers will help them make informed decisions about the resources the IT team needs to strengthen security, like budgeting for security tools, running training programs and launching risk management initiatives.

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Integrating security into daily operations

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An essential part of cybersecurity culture is ensuring that security practices are integrated into every aspect of a business’s daily operations. MSPs and IT professionals make this possible by:

• Establishing clear security policies and protocols: Developing and enforcing easy-to-understand policies around password management, data handling, remote work, security awareness training requirements and device usage ensures that employees know exactly what is expected of them.
• Educating all employees about cyber-risk. Building a strong cybersecurity culture is rooted in education about cyber-risks and best practices. That education must include everyone, no matter their rank in the company – managers are twice as likely as average employees to fall for a phishing attack.
• Automating security processes: IT professionals can save businesses money and make their own lives easier by finding smart ways to implement artificial intelligence (AI) and automation in security. Many routine security tasks, such as patching, vulnerability scans, file backup, and adjudicating email threats, can be automated, taking pressure off frequently under-resourced IT teams.

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Supporting incident response and recovery

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Even with a strong cybersecurity culture in place, no business is immune to cyberattacks. MSPs and IT professionals can help businesses develop and execute an efficient incident response and recovery process through:

• Leading incident response planning: IT professionals and MSPs can help businesses design and execute incident response plans that ensure employees and leadership know how to react in the event of a cyberattack. This includes elements like establishing clear communication channels, allocating responsibilities and locating resources.
• Minimizing downtime and financial loss: The other side of the coin is recovery. MSPs and IT professionals are key players in mounting a smart recovery. By ensuring that a company is ready to handle trouble, they can help businesses recover quickly and avoid significant financial losses. The average cost of downtime is $427 per minute for small businesses and $9,000 per minute for a large business.

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A vibrant security culture is a powerful shield

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Partnering with managed service providers (MSPs) and IT professionals enables businesses to develop a long-term strategy for building a resilient cybersecurity culture. This partnership embeds security into the organization’s core and helps businesses adopt a security-first mindset essential for long-term success.

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Get the building blocks of a strong defense against cyberthreats

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Our cybersecurity solutions offer the tools that MSPs and IT professionals need to mitigate cyber-risk for businesses quickly and affordably.  

BullPhish ID – This effective, automated security awareness training and phishing simulation solution provides critical training that improves compliance, prevents employee mistakes and reduces a company’s risk of being hit by a cyberattack.   

Dark Web ID – Our award-winning dark web monitoring solution is the channel leader for good reason. It provides the greatest amount of protection around with 24/7/365 human- and machine-powered monitoring of business and personal credentials, including domains, IP addresses and email addresses.  

Graphus – This automated anti-phishing solution uses AI and a patented algorithm to catch and quarantine dangerous messages. It learns from every organization’s unique communication patterns to continuously tailor protection without human intervention. Best of all, it deploys in minutes to defend businesses from phishing and email-based cyberattacks, including zero day, AI-created and novel threats.

RocketCyber Managed SOC – Our managed cybersecurity detection and response (MDR) solution is backed by a world-class security operations center that detects malicious and suspicious activity across three critical attack vectors: endpoint, network and cloud.    

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