When we talk about cybersecurity, it can be a complex topic.

But at its core, cybersecurity is all about the people that use technology. Equally important are the businesses who have an ethical responsibility to keep consumer data safe.

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month (CSAM). Since 2004, Cybersecurity Awareness Month helps individuals protect themselves online as threats to technology and confidential data become more commonplace.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the National Cybersecurity Alliance (NCA) lead a collaborative effort between government and industry to raise cybersecurity awareness nationally and internationally.

See yourself in cyber

The CISA wants you to see yourself in cyber no matter what role you play.

• As an individual or consumer, take basic steps to protect your online information and privacy.
• Vendors and suppliers can take ownership of their role, while protecting their brand and reputation, by putting strong cybersecurity in place at work to help prevent an incident at your location or further down the supply chain.
• Critical infrastructure owners and operators, you are part of a larger network of functions and systems that rely on or support critical infrastructure. Learn how your organization plays a part in ensuring cybersecurity for the larger ecosystem.

Make sure that you embrace the basics of security to help your cyber presence.

These are the top four ways we’ll focus on cybersecurity in October. Watch for more detailed information on social media at #becybersmart.

Enable Multi-Factor Authentication

Not every account offers MFA, but it’s becoming more popular every day.

It’s seen on many accounts that usually hold either valuable financial or personal information like banks, financial institutions, online stores, or social media platforms.

Did you know:

• Nearly half (48%) of US/UK respondents say they have “never heard of MFA.” Multi-factor authentication is an incredibly valuable tool that goes a long way in keeping accounts secure.
• In fact, of those who knew about it (52%), most had applied MFA to their online accounts (81%) and were still using it (90%), showing that once MFA is enabled, users will keep using it.

Any place online that is storing your personal information (especially financial information), or any account that can be compromised and used to trick or defraud someone else should be protected with MFA. Simply put, use MFA everywhere!

Use strong passwords and password managers

53% of people rely on their memory to manage passwords. (Ponemon Institute)

As our online lives expand, we’ve gone from having just a few passwords to today, where we might manage upwards of 100.

Did you know:

• 43% of adults have shared their password with someone. (Google)
• Only 45% of adults would change a password after a breach. (Google)
• 75% of people said they don’t know how to create secure passwords in the first place. (Ponemon Institute)
• 81% of the total number of breaches leveraged stolen or weak passwords. (LastPast)
• 61% of employees use the same passwords for multiple platforms. (LastPast)

Always use strong passwords and implement a password manager, if needed, to save you a lot of headaches and make accounts safer by recommending strong passwords.

Update your software

Nearly a third (31%) of US/UK respondents say they either “sometimes,” “rarely,” or “never” install software updates. (NCA)

Did you know:

• 68% of the participants reported installing the latest updates and software as soon as these are available. (NCA)
• Of those who reported installing the latest updates to their devices, 45% had turned on automatic updates. A further 21% noting that they take immediate action when they receive a notification. (NCA)
• Just 20% of Android devices use the latest and safest OS version. (Symantec)

One of the easiest ways to keep information secure is to keep software and apps updated by enabling automatic updates. Updates fix general software problems and provide new security patches where criminals might get in.

Recognize and report phishing

Phishing attacks have become an increasingly widespread problem for organizations of all sizes and can be very difficult to spot. 30% of small businesses consider phishing attacks to be their top cybersecurity concern.

Did you know:

• 72% of respondents reported that they checked to see whether messages were legitimate (i.e. phishing or a scam) compared to 10% who reported not doing so. (NCA)
• Nearly half of the participants (48%) reported phishing emails to the sender (e.g. the real person the cybercriminal tried to impersonate by sending the phishing email). (NCA)
• 42% of the participants said they used the reporting capability on a platform (e.g. Gmail) “very often” or “always”. (NCA)

It’s important for every individual to stop and think before clicking on a link or attachment in a message and know how to spot the red flags.

Get expert security advice to keep your information safe

As a CSAM champion, you can count on Cyber Solutions Technologies to keep cybersecurity our #1 priority.

Follow along on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn during the month of October to discover all of the ways you can be smart online and educate others around you to do the same.

If you’d like more information about how to keep your business safe, contact us today for an expert consultation.