10 Facts About the Benefits of Security Awareness Training
These 10 Facts About the Benefits of Security Awareness Training Are Game-Changers
Are you looking for an affordable, effective way to protect your company from cyberattacks and prevent a data breach? In today’s volatile cyberattack landscape, every business in every industry is at risk of a cyberattack. That means that every business needs to make sure that it’s taking a strong defensive posture with the right solutions in place to reduce risk. One of those solutions should be a robust security awareness training program. While it may sound nebulous, security awareness training is a powerful weapon for protecting a business from cybercrime. These 10 facts about the benefits of security awareness training illustrate why this small investment brings big rewards to smart businesses.
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10 Facts About the Benefits of Security Awareness Training
- Security awareness training improves overall password security by an estimated 30-50%.
- Security awareness training reduces the cost of phishing by more than 50%.
- Even a modest investment in security awareness and training has a 72% chance of significantly reducing the business impact of a cyberattack.
- Companies that engage in regular security awareness training have 70% fewer security incidents.
- Security awareness training improves phishing awareness by an estimated 40%.
- Security-related risks are reduced by 70% when businesses invest in cybersecurity awareness training.
- Security awareness training programs have a 3-fold return on investment or more
- Trained users are 30% less likely to click on a phishing link.
- 93% of cybersecurity experts agree that organizations should focus on both humans and technology to detect and respond to cyberthreats.
- 84% of leading organizations in the IBM Cyber Resilient Organization Study 2021 cite security awareness training as a key building block of cyber resilience.
Security Awareness Training Packs a Powerful Return on Investment
Security awareness training s one of a company’s smartest investments. It’s a small-ticket item in a security budget with a low upfront cost, but it brings an ROI that any accountant will love to the table. It doesn’t matter how big or small a business is either. Everyone gains a lot from spending a little. Small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) get an ROI of 69% and larger organizations see an ROI of 562%. It’s the one bright spot in this tale of increased expense, and it’s an easy thing for businesses to do that pays dividends in other areas of cybercrime protection.
That’s one reason why it’s shocking that less than 60% of companies run regular security awareness training, leaving employees in the dark about risks and companies in danger. But a commitment to a vibrant security culture that prevents things like employee errors has to come from the top down, and many executives don’t help build it. IBM cites simple bravado followed by unfamiliarity with potential risks as a strong driver of failure in top-down security culture – 60% of SMB owners feel that their businesses will never face any kind of cybersecurity incidents. Executives at big businesses weren’t much more in tune with the reality of cybersecurity risk. Over 65% of senior-level decision-makers said they didn’t believe the businesses for which they’re responsible would ever fall victim to a cyberattack.
Businesses Are Failing at Security Awareness Training
Although security awareness training is proven effective as a tool for improving a company’s overall security, it can be a hard sell to non-tech decision-makers, leading to security awareness training neglect. Especially when 62% of IT departments are tightening their budgets. Unfortunately, many organizations aren’t investing in this powerful tool. Security awareness training neglect is a real problem that makes organizations less safe every day.
- 45% of employees receive no security training at all from their employer
- Only 52% of organizations do anti-phishing training.
- Just over 30% of organizations offer ransomware-focused security training.
- Only one quarter of companies provided social engineering training for employees.
- 55% of companies don’t provide even basic email security training.
- 62% of companies do not do enough security awareness training to receive any benefits.
Employees Aren’t Aware of Risks
One consequence of security awareness training neglect is that employees don’t know about security risks, and they have no idea how their behavior could put their company’s security at risk. In fact, far too many aren’t aware that they’re even responsible for anything to do with security at all. Employees that aren’t on the same page for security are a dangerous liability.
- 45% of respondents in a HIPAA Journal survey said that they don’t need to worry about cybersecurity safeguards because they don’t work in the IT department.
- An estimated 97% of employees in a wide array of industries are unable to recognize a sophisticated phishing email
- Negligent employees create over 60% of security incidents.
- Only an estimated 30% of internet users even know what ransomware or malware is.
- An estimated 34% of business IT leaders in an employee behavior survey admitted that a simple lack of employee understanding of today’s sophisticated phishing threats was their biggest security problem.
Security Awareness Training Builds a Strong Security Culture
Experts around the world agree that building a strong security culture is critical for any organization that wants to reduce insider risk, prevent cyberattacks and avoid a data breach. The benefits of a strong security culture as outlined by the UK Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure include:
- A workforce that is more likely to be engaged with, and take responsibility for, security issues
- Increased compliance with protective security measures
- Reduced risk of insider incidents
- Awareness of the most relevant security threats
- Employees are more likely to think and act in a security-conscious manner
A strong security culture is an educated workforce. Employees who know what to look for are a powerful safeguard against cybercrime. Knowing what to do in case of a security issue is just as important. When employees know what to do if they see a problem or make a mistake, the company is more secure. Employees are empowered to take action to improve and preserve security with confidence in a healthy security culture because they’re knowledgeable about security risks.
These five green flags indicate a healthy security culture:
- Security awareness training is never used as a punishment
- Everyone knows they’re a valuable part of the security team
- Employees receive regular training in identifying risks
- Asking for help when an employee is unclear about a security issue is encouraged
- No one flouts security procedures with impunity
