There are a lot of things you have to do to make your workplace safer. You do it to keep your business safe, you do it to keep yourself safe, but you also do it to keep your employees safe. Unfortunately, your employees don’t always see it that way. Many safety protocols can seem like more trouble than they are worth. So, it isn’t uncommon for employees to disregard your safety and security measures.
Not only do you have to train your employees to be safer, you have to encourage them to care. Here are some tips that will take your security training beyond the meeting room and make your employees more security minded.
Make Your Security Operation Center a Big Deal
If you have been in business for any amount of time, you understand the importance of a Security Operation Center (SOC). With a managed SOC, you can continuously monitor your organization’s security while detecting, preventing, analyzing, and responding to any cyber security incidents that you’re faced with.
Do your employees know about this system? If they aren’t in IT, they may not. Fill them in on what a SOC is, what it does, and how it keeps your company safe. The more your employees know what it is and what it does, the more likely they are to think carefully about their activities on the internet.
Practice With Live Fire Exercises
Live fire exercises are a great way to determine how seriously your workforce takes security. You do have to be careful. You don’t want your employees to feel like they are being set up.
There is a right and a wrong way to phish your employees. Before you send out fake emails and see how everyone responds, there are a few things you should do. First, make sure everyone is properly trained in how to identify phishing messages. Everyone should have a fighting chance at knowing what to look for when your fake emails go out. You should also notify employees that a phishing attempt is going to take place. That way they don’t feel like you’re tricking them.
It’s also important to talk about what will happen if they deal with the phishing message inappropriately. There should be no punishments. Fear doesn’t create a positive workplace. Instead, make it clear that they will simply be pulled aside or retrained.
Have a System for Reporting
Do your employees know what to do if they see something fishy? Your workforce is more likely to take safety seriously if they not only know what to look for, but they know what to do about it. Who do they talk to if they see a coworker posting questionable things about the company online? Do they delete phishing emails or notify someone that they received a strange message? Create a system that employees can follow so they know who to talk to about what and when.
Reward Those Who Do the Right Thing
When there is so much to do, it can seem much easier just to delete that email or let that strange post by a coworker on social media go. If you want your employees to take an active role in making your company safer, you have to encourage everyone to do the right thing.
That might mean providing them with rewards and incentives! A few ideas include:
- Extra time off for those who identify and properly report a live fire phishing exercise.
- Free lunch for anyone who attends safety training sessions.
- Gifts and prizes for keeping incidents below a certain amount.
Ask Employees What They Are Worried About
There might be a lot that keeps you up at night when it comes to the security of your business, but what keeps your employees up at night? Don’t be afraid to ask!
Having open, honest conversations with your employees and showing that you care what they worry about are great ways to earn their trust. Ask them if they worry about their personal information at work being leaked, if they worry about the increase in phishing text messages they now get, and if they worry about leaving their house unattended at night while they stay late at work. Come up with solutions together and they are sure to be more security minded both at home and in the office.
There’s a lot you have to do to train your employees in safety protocols, but with these tips, you can actually encourage them to care about everything they’re learning!
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