Why Security Awareness Training Is An Essential Part Of Your Security Strategy

Every year, millions of people fall victim to cybercrime. Hackers and criminals prey on their victims using a wide variety of elaborate techniques such as phishing emails, ransomware attacks, and phony web pages, among others. In fact, scams that have plagued society for centuries only continue to grow in size, sophistication, and complexity. For instance, the well-known Nigerian email hoax has roots from a common “Spanish Prisoner” scam that dates back more than 100 years. In this type of primitive “advanced fee scam,” the fraudster requests cash in return for a large commission which, of course, is never delivered.

Today, cyber scams know no bounds. In no other time in history has it been so easy to target anyone, anywhere, anytime. Cybercriminals don’t discriminate; consumers and businesses in all industries, large and small, are potential targets. As a matter of fact, small businesses are often targeted simply because they lack in-house IT security resources. What’s more, due to the volume, velocity, and variance of today’s threats, technology solutions cannot mitigate every potential breach.

How do we fall victim so easily? Most people want to trust and assist others in need. But today, this trusting nature is chronically exploited by cybercriminals looking to take advantage. We are constantly being socially engineered by those who want to harm, undermine, and steal from us. What’s more, these cyberattacks are progressively more personal, making them barely detectable by even the most tech-savvy internet users.