Just like every other culture, Enterprise Cybersecurity culture is also about mindset. A cybersecurity culture tells how strong your organization is when it comes to defending its critical assets against cybersecurity attacks. Not only is cybersecurity pivotal for mitigating cybersecurity threats but it is also important for realizing cybersecurity investments and helps you greatly during strategic shifts and decision making.
The growing number of cybersecurity attacks targeting enterprises has forced businesses to implement a cybersecurity culture. A survey conducted by IT and cybersecurity professionals in the US revealed that 84% of organizations are already using a cybersecurity framework but still they fail to perform well because they lack a cybersecurity culture.
Enterprise Cybersecurity
A great cybersecurity culture encompasses every facet of an organization from processes to teams, metrics to tools. It enhances visibility into threats, ensures business continuity and faster recovery after cybersecurity attacks, and protects customer trust. Companies implementing cybersecurity culture see their employees participate in training programs, play their role, and follow all the cybersecurity best practices.
In this article, you will learn about seven key elements that every great culture has and yours should too.
Leadership
CIO or security leaders play an important role in establishing cybersecurity policies which goes a long way in implementing an Enterprise Cybersecurity culture in your organization. He also must oversee the security operation team, which deploys and monitors the tools required as well as ensure consistency and effectiveness of the controls, policies, and procedures.
A security leader should also initiate and drive learning and development initiatives forward by collaborating closely with the human resource department as they would do with the IT department when they must buy VPS server. The focus of cybersecurity leaders should be on improving the processes as well as the skillset of your cybersecurity team while increasing cybersecurity awareness in your employees. CIOs should push their vision forward to take their organization where they want to see it and persuade others to follow them and buy into the vision. If your cybersecurity leader does not lead from the front and set the tone, it would be difficult for you to implement a cybersecurity culture in your organization.
Education and Training
Did you know that the majority of cybersecurity attacks and data breaches occur due to human error? Yes, you read that right. That is why it is important for businesses to invest in cybersecurity awareness programs to educate their employees about cybersecurity. This saves your employees from falling victim to social engineering attacks such as phishing and spear phishing. The more awareness your employees have about cybersecurity, the less likely they are to click on malicious links or download malicious files sent to them via email.
Follow it up by organizing cybersecurity training programs that provide role-specific training to your security teams. Test the knowledge of your employees by launching mock cybercity attacks to see whether they fall in the trap or not. Make sure you stay transparent about the cybersecurity risks and highlight the negative impact of following bad cybersecurity hygiene.
Stakeholder Involvement
Every stakeholder should take an interest and play their part in implementing a cybersecurity culture. IT and cybersecurity teams are not the only ones responsible. Make cybersecurity culture a shared goal and responsibility. Not only your cybersecurity leaders and executives but also all the other stakeholders such as vendors, suppliers, and employees also need to be on the same page to implement cybersecurity culture successfully. If all the stakeholders have different opinions, you might find yourself stuck in a rut and it will stall your progress towards cybersecurity culture implementation.
Communication
Creating a cybersecurity strategy and plan is one thing but executing that plan and strategy is a completely different ball game. Establish a two-way communication channel in which information flows both ways. Employees should be allowed to voice their opinions and you should also value their opinion as it can help you improve the culture around security, streamline processes and tools. If you keep your employees in the dark about Enterprise Cybersecurity initiatives or enforce strict regulation abruptly, you will face resistance from their side.
Attitude and Behavior
Everything from beliefs, attitude, behavior, assumptions, and how people feel and engage with your company comes under your organization’s culture. It will influence how they react to Enterprise Cybersecurity attacks. Do they get panic attacks when they know about cybersecurity attacks or follow the incident response plan? As a cybersecurity leader, you should provide employees enough opportunities so they can express themselves freely. If you want to bring a positive change in the behavior and attitude of your employees, you must create policies and procedures with employees in mind.
Ecosystem
We live in a global village where your business can not thrive in isolation. That is why you should adopt an open cybersecurity culture. Share threat intelligence with other businesses operating in the same industry. Incorporate audits and benchmarks into procurement and partnerships to enhance the cybersecurity posture of your business. You can build an ecosystem by collaborating with different stakeholders which allows you to create and share different models, code, and tools. After all, most businesses share similar cybersecurity issues and have a much better chance to succeed if they do a collective effort with other businesses.
Metrics
How are metrics related to cybersecurity culture? Is that what you are thinking? I don’t blame you because most people see metrics and cybersecurity culture as two separate entities. They play an important role in your security culture especially if you look at the broader picture. These metrics show how effective your cybersecurity training sessions were and how productive your cybersecurity team is?
More importantly, it also helps you in identifying underlying issues, ensure compliance, set future targets, and help make the right decisions. Good cybersecurity culture is not based on fear-mongering but focuses on holding employees accountable for their actions.
What elements of cybersecurity culture are most important in your opinion? Let us know in the comments section below.
