TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY
Q. WHAT AFFORDABLE STEPS CAN SMES TAKE TO BUILD A CULTURE OF VIGILANCE?
» For smaller businesses, building cyber resilience doesn’ t have to mean heavy investment. Training staff on how to recognise phishing, social engineering or suspicious physical activity is the most cost-effective way to strengthen defences.
Affordable training programmes now use gamification and realistic simulations, making them engaging as well as impactful. SMEs can also run simple internal tests, such as phishing email exercises, to reinforce good habits.
Establishing clear policies, such as locking devices or verifying unusual requests, helps create a baseline of security culture.
Crucially, vigilance should be seen as everyone’ s responsibility, not just the IT teams. Regular communication about threats, sharing lessons learned and rewarding proactive behaviour all reinforce this mindset.
Carrying out an audit of your security services to understand where vulnerabilities may lie and investing in training should also form a core part of any business’ protection plans. Finally, SMEs should monitor and adapt as threats evolve. By combining training, testing and continuous improvement, even modest investments can transform staff into an effective human firewall.
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