As we come out of the 2010s and into a completely new decade, it is high time to shine a light on the importance of employee training and education in information technology. The ‘East-West’ cyberwar happening at the moment between powerful nations has resulted in many new cybersecurity risks, globally.
The 2010s have been marked by an enormous uptick in cybercrime, especially so as the pandemic took hold. We have seen that cyberattacks are growing in sophistication and reach; with everything from phishing, global malware campaigns and ruthless ransomware attacks affecting individuals and businesses worldwide.
This means that cybersecurity, whether that be for businesses or the individual, will be at the center stage for everybody. As the internet (a.k.a the cyberspace) develops, becomes more complex and expands its reach on multiple digital channels, cybersecurity awareness is now not just a topic for IT professionals, but for the average person too.
How Cybercrime Wreaks Havoc on The World
According to research and statistics, cybercrime has resulted in several billions of dollars of damage worldwide in the last two decades. Especially the latter part of the 2010s has seen very large growth in cybercrime. Globally, annual damages are currently in the billions, and rising. The United States itself is having annual losses estimated at over 500 million dollars, and is also the country targeted most by cybercriminals in general. Most serious cybercrime events fall under phishing, DDoS and ransomware attacks. Out of these three, ransomware is definitely the most ruthless.
Cybercrimes always consist of a form of malware (malicious software) with the end-goal being profit or dominance, e.g. the infamous recent SolarWinds breach, which was a high-profile breach that had worrisome implications on a national level. Apart from large-scale cyber crime though, there is cause for concern even at the individual level, for the everyday man. Online privacy risks such as personal cloud storage breaches, hidden crypto-mining, email phishing, spoofing, you name it -your average Joe or Jane have probably experienced it (maybe even you have too).
Cybersecurity Factors That Will Determine IT Sector Training
As we have seen above, particularly the last few years have seen some scary growth in cybercrime. When lockdowns took hold in 2019, and as we entered 2020, the fact that the industry has transitioned to remote work has been a gold mine for cyberattackers. With this in mind when it comes to training, education and awareness in the IT sector; it is important to look at the security trends, and challenges.
Going forward in this year and beyond, it will be crucial to consider the following;
- Businesses will be relying on cloud storage, so security training is paramount
- Ongoing shortages in technical staff is causing issues, automation cannot cover it all
- The need to protect Machine Learning from attacks, as well as develop it for security
- Ransomware, phishing, and malware in general is on the rise
- Internet of Things vulnerabilities and threats are rising
- The need to focus on mobile/desktop privacy security is very serious nowadays
- Artificial intelligence is surging in utilization, as are the security risks
- Maintaining supply chain security will be on the agenda
Why Training in Cybersecurity Awareness is Crucial
An often overlooked factor, but probably the most important factor in technology today, is employee education and training. For the above reasons, it is absolutely essential that proper employee training is applied in the IT sector. With all of this in mind, it is no exaggeration that cybersecurity education will be at the forefront of the future of global security.
Proper training and education of employees (and just knowledge in general) will lead to a much needed improvement in cyber-awareness. The benefits are manyfold, and will provide the following benefits, split into two categories;
Security
- Preparedness against cyberthreats will improve security in general. Data breaches, organizational and process-related mistakes will be reduced
- Training in asset digitization, data storage and cloud security is crucial for modern businesses
- Sharing cybersecurity responsibility across employees in the business will greatly pressure on technical support IT departments
Knowledge
- Specialist knowledge will help companies better integrate with laws and regulations such as EU GDPR and CCPA
- Boosting the workforce with education and training will lead to better efficiency, agility and effectively reduced costs for businesses in the long-run
- Dealing with new software and transitions to new IT systems will be more smoother
At the end of the day, it is important to understand that it is no longer only the responsibility of specialised ‘IT departments’ to take care of cybersecurity at the workplace. Because of how far reaching and sophisticated cybersecurity threats have become, it is very important that everyone gets involved and has some sort of basic education and training in cybersecurity. Training and knowledge will not only help security-wise, but will lead to a happier, more motivated and confident workforce overall.