5 Requirements for an Effective Security Training Program
Would you be facing an uphill battle if you had to prove your team follows security policies?
The goal of security training is to educate your team so they’ll make better decisions when it comes to cybersecurity hygiene.
The problem with this training approach is that you may be treating it just like a tool. As a result, the training might not be catered to your specific policies, leaving no way to prove that you are consistently training them correctly.
It’s not that the training itself is bad. Your team can answer review questions upon completion, so you know they had at least one eye on the training video and learned something.
However, your training needs to be part of your security program and not just another tool.
So, what are the 5 requirements for an effective security training program?
Requirement 1: Each video can be linked back to your security policies
If you sign up your team for security training, shouldn’t it reinforce what your policies already say? The problem with a lot of trainings is that they vaguely link back to your organization’s policies and procedures. This can cause inconsistency with your team when it comes to following your security program. It’s vital to make sure every training appropriately covers the material and connects to your specific policies, so you show that you are doing what you promised.
Requirement 2: Training is timely
Just one training isn’t enough anymore. If your team isn’t regularly reminded of risks, they will forget everything. If you think I’m joking just check the headlines and see what companies were hit with an avoidable attack. Your program needs to have recurring training if you’re going to truly protect your organization.
Requirement 3: Training is relevant
Many platforms just generate content for the sake of creating content. The question I want you to think about is whether the content is making your team safer. Are you confident in the content that’s relayed to your team? If you aren’t, you’re probably just checking a meaningless box when it comes to training. Your team may not be thinking critically about what they are doing. If critical thinking isn’t happening, then the training is either not relevant or isn’t being perceived as relevant.
Requirement 4: Training links back to your security controls
You likely have security controls in place in your organization without realizing it. Controls prevent any security issues from popping up; controls are items that help prevent risk. By training your team on the most important controls within your organization, you can remediate a lot of problems.
Do your team members work in email all day? If they do, you probably want to have some security in place to prevent email-related attacks. That could look like preventing sensitive data being sent to external accounts or indicating when emails are coming in from internal accounts. If you train your employees on the controls you have set, they will understand why they are there and recognize when things don’t feel quite right.
Requirement 5: Training is actionable
We always recommend a short mission after training. That mission could be looking for a scam that is popping up or reevaluating current habits. Whatever the mission, it should be something to help your team protect their personal and professional identities.
Security training is an important necessity to have at your workplace. Just having the training is a good first step, but I want to challenge you to make sure that your training aligns with your security program though.