In this day and age, it’s likely that most if not all of your employees use a computer, smartphone or tablet for work. Unfortunately with these modern conveniences comes considerable risk. Cybercriminals are excellent at finding ways to obtain confidential information and much of it happens to unsuspecting employees where they spend a great deal of their time—on employer-issued devices.
IT departments work hard to advocate for and uphold data security, but they can only accomplish so much on their own. The security of your organization’s data is everyone’s responsibility—even if they don’t know it. Get everyone on board with secure tech practices by building security into your company culture and working to make it fun.
When security policies are made known and there are ways to engage employees you’re likely to see more accountability and responsibility as it relates to protecting information. Integrating information security into the everyday life of your organization could be the difference between being protected and experiencing a costly breach.
Empower employees to take ownership of their security
Knowledge is power, but knowledge is also the difference between safety and getting phished. Your employees might not be proactively protecting their data because they don’t know enough about secure practices and don’t want to mess anything up. Empower them to manage their own security by making information security education an essential and fun part of your organization.
Turn training sessions into games that let everyone feel like they’re getting a break from work while they’re learning. Games like data breach trivia or information security Jeopardy will engage your employees and help them keep security top of mind.
A little friendly competition goes a long way
Once your team is up to speed with current security best practices, they may need a little encouragement to go the extra mile for information safety. Create a system to reward those who go above and beyond to protect their data and promote security measures in your company.
Build positivity into this reward system by encouraging employees to celebrate their colleagues. It doesn’t just have to be the IT or leadership teams that keep an eye out for security advocates—coworkers can recognize each other for good work and nominate one another for rewards. This positive reinforcement system boosts team morale and furthers security within your culture.
Let your security team be familiar faces in the office
Larger organizations often face the issues of silos—where departments have no idea what other departments do. It’s inherent and natural, however, it’s imperative that your security team not be strangers within the organization. Everyone should know who they are, what they do and feel comfortable reaching out to them for help.
One way to foster a connection between your security team and the rest of your staff is to implement a “security buddy” program. Your security team members can work directly with different departments of your organization to teach them about information security. You’ll increase intradepartmental networking and make your staff more familiar with the people ultimately managing their data security.
No single tactic to engage team members about information security works for every company, but you can build safety into your culture with a little creative thinking and some fun. To learn more about potential security solutions for your organization, contact the team at DataShield.
