You have likely heard about the importance of annual cybersecurity awareness training many times. While this is true, there is one big problem: training that only comes around as often as Christmas is not effective on its own. It is all too easy for employees to forget everything they have learned by the time the next session begins. In the meantime, your business may have experienced dozens of cyber-attacks that your team was not equipped to prevent.
How can you maintain a strong cybersecurity culture for the other 364 days of the year? After all, constant, in-depth training sessions are hardly realistic. To properly cover the topic at hand you will typically lose at least a day of productivity, which simply isn’t sustainable for most businesses. What can you do to ensure your message is being received – and more crucially, remembered?
Why is Cybersecurity Awareness Important for Your Business?
This may be your first time ever hearing about cybersecurity awareness programs, in which case you may wonder why they are so essential to begin with. The short answer is this: threat actors are always looking for an easy target. Their ideal victim is a business where the staff know nothing about security, because this company will present very few barriers to their attacks.
In contrast, when staff are well-educated on modern security tactics, your business becomes a much smaller target. You are far less likely to experience social engineering scams in particular, which are increasingly used to bypass traditional security solutions. You are also less likely to fall victim to data leaks and insider threats. This ultimately protects your business from data theft, financial loss, and reputational damage.
The Benefits of Annual Cybersecurity Awareness Training Programs
An annual cybersecurity awareness program is your first step towards a safer business. These sessions establish baseline knowledge, explore common threats, and teach practical security strategies.
Some benefits of an annual program include:
Staff learn how to identify phishing attempts, unsafe links, and suspicious attachments.
Everyone receives the same information on company protocols and acceptable use policies, ensuring consistent behavior.
Anything that increases overall security, including training, improves your compliance with data protection regulations.
Well-informed employees are far less likely to fall victim to scams or make security-related errors.
But there is a downside: As effective as these programs are, knowledge fades over time. Without continuous reinforcement, awareness drops and dangerous behaviors start to creep back in.
Filling in the Gaps: How to Keep Staff Cyber Aware Throughout the Year
To build a truly resilient team, you need to prioritize cybersecurity awareness all year long. Here are some strategies you can use to maintain a security-first culture between formal training sessions:
1. Monthly Microlearning
Offer bite-sized training modules or short quizzes each month. These should cover specific topics, such as strong password practices or safe browsing habits. Shorter sessions are easy to digest and can be performed more regularly than comprehensive training.
2. Simulated Phishing Attacks
Run regular phishing simulations to test your team’s knowledge. When someone clicks a false link or “gives away” sensitive information, turn it into a teachable moment. Over time, your employees will become more cautious of potential scams.
Learn what to do if you accidentally click on a phishing email
3. Visual Reminders
Post cyber safety tips around the office and on devices, such as posters and login screen reminders. Simple messages like “Think before you click” help keep cybersecurity top of mind.
4. Internal Newsletters
If your business has a staff newsletter, this is a fantastic opportunity to include cybersecurity tips. Share real-world examples of recent security breaches, and how they could have been prevented. Keep the tone engaging and relatable, not alarmist.
5. Gamify It
Games and reward systems can be highly effective as an educational tool. Introduce some friendly competition into the mix with trivia, interactive learning, and leaderboards to show off staff who really put in the work. Remember to reward employees who do particularly well.
6. Real-Time Feedback
Use automated security tools that alert users when they attempt risky actions. If your staff member clicks on a link and immediately receives a warning message, they are more likely to stop and think about the situation. This real-time feedback also solidifies the theory they have already learned, by putting it into a real-world context.
What to Do When Your Employees Start Slipping Up
Despite your best efforts, human beings are not perfect and mistakes can still happen. It may be tempting to scold or punish, but these responses are rarely effective and will significantly lower morale. More worryingly, employees may be less likely to report a cyber-attack in the future if they have seen you punish a coworker for a similar error. Instead of playing the blame game, treat mistakes as opportunities for improvement.
Address the security incident as soon as possible, while it’s still fresh. Do so in private, or avoid using names in front of the whole office. This will prevent embarrassment, keep morale high, and promote positive behaviors. Staff who feel publicly humiliated often just want the situation to end, and will attempt to run from it rather than finding a solution.
One-on-one refreshers can help employees understand what went wrong and how to avoid it next time.
Assign a short course or quiz related to the mistake to reinforce best practices.
If the same issues keep popping up, your staff may not be the problem. Check your cybersecurity awareness training for potential gaps that need to be addressed.
Always remember that the goal is progress, not perfection. If your employees each make one less mistake than they did the year before, then your program is working. It may not seem like much right now, but in the future even this small improvement may make a large difference in your overall security posture. Focus on your team’s successes, not their mistakes.
Cyber Awareness Education That Sticks All Year Long
An annual cybersecurity awareness training program is the bare minimum. While it creates a strong foundation, that ultimately means nothing if you do not continue to build upon it. Threat actors don’t wait for the same day every year to strike, and neither should your cyber awareness efforts. Continuous reinforcement, supplemented with additional support where needed, will help your team protect your business for the entire year – not just the few weeks surrounding their annual training. In the long run, this will reduce breaches and ensure a higher security standard.
But what if you don’t know anything about cybersecurity? How can you train your staff in a topic you don’t understand either? ION247 has you covered. Read our step-by-step guide to learn how you can secure your business.
