How to improve cyber resilience across your workforce

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Cyber attacks are increasing both in number and complexity, yet many businesses are still failing to provide adequate cyber security training for their employees. Although British companies experienced 2.39mn cyber attacks over the past year, only 18 per cent of them provided cyber security training to their staff, according to the UK government’s 2023 Cyber Security Breaches Survey. Such a lack of security training often means staff are unequipped to deal with existing — and emerging — cyber threats. A study by the UK’s Chartered Management Institute found that just one in 10 managers understood security basics, such as setting strong passwords and spotting malicious emails. This knowledge gap persists despite humans playing a role in 74 per cent of cyber security breaches — according to the Verizon 2023 Data Breach Investigations Report — for example, by clicking on malicious hyperlinks or opening documents in phishing emails. Businesses must therefore view cyber security hygiene as a “top priority” and develop a “cyber-conscious company culture”, says Tris Morgan, managing director of security at UK telecoms group BT.