Every year, October is observed as National Cybersecurity Awareness Month. During this month, organizations strive to raise awareness about safeguarding from online threats, better workplace cybersecurity, and the effectiveness of solid security practices for maximum protection. The theme for NCSAM 2022 is See yourself in cyber, which is an invitation to businesses to actively participate in security activities, not just during October but year-round.
It is an initiative to send the message that cybersecurity is not a highly complex and technical issue that regular employees of a business cannot undertake. It is a reminder to business owners that online security is a must for their business, no matter the domain or scale of their enterprise.
First started by the US Congress back in 2004, NCSAM has had various themes and enterprises have benefitted from active participation. This year’s theme is very inclusive of all businesses and we’re sure there will be better awareness and preparedness globally because of it.
How should you view NCSAM 2022?
For individuals and families, See Yourself in Cyber implores you to take active efforts to stay safe online. You, as a member of the online community, can work towards your cyber responsibility by following basic good practices such as keeping your applications up-to-date, educating yourself about spam and phishing, following the best password practices, and enabling MFA across all your login portals.
For those up-and-coming cybersecurity professionals, See Yourself in Cyber is an encouragement to become a part of the cybersecurity industry. We need more enthusiastic and skilled professionals to join the industry so we can tighten the security of the online world.
For our partners and other IT and cybersecurity service providers in the industry, the NCSAM 2022 theme is an invitation to contribute to the larger picture of expert solutions and superior security tools. Through collaboration and information sharing, we can make the cyber world a safer world for online businesses and civilians participating in digital activities.
Plan of Action
No matter which of these categories you fit in, there are certain steps you can take yourself and as SOPs to your employees for better personal and workplace security.
Think Before You Click: Learn to recognize phishing attempts by staying up-to-date with the latest phishing techniques hackers are using. If you come across phishing attempts or feel that an email you have received is a potential threat, report it immediately. Train yourself to look at emails objectively, without getting trapped into any lucrative messaging in emails
Update Your Software: We cannot stress this enough. Zero-day vulnerabilities are a very real, dangerous threat. Don’t delay software updates and if possible, turn on automatic updates wherever possible.
Strong Password Policies: You are saving a lot of the hackers’ efforts by using weak passwords. Don’t use the same password for multiple accounts and remember not to use personal information like birthdays etc. as your password. Test your password strength with the benchmarks given in our password policy guidelines.
Enable Multi-Factor Authentication: MFA is a simple yet efficient tool that will considerably improve your security posture. It adds a layer of protection around your password, making it doubly difficult for hackers to penetrate your account.
