Close Menu
TechCentralTechCentral

    Subscribe to the newsletter

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    WhatsApp Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    • News

      Britehouse breaks free from NTT Data

      10 July 2025

      Samsung’s bet on folding phones faces major test

      10 July 2025

      OpenAI to launch web browser in direct challenge to Google Chrome

      10 July 2025

      The satellite broadband operators taking on Starlink

      9 July 2025

      Yaccarino out: Musk’s handpicked CEO quits X suddenly

      9 July 2025
    • World

      Grok 4 arrives with bold claims and fresh controversy

      10 July 2025

      Cupertino vs Brussels: Apple challenges Big Tech crackdown

      7 July 2025

      Grammarly acquires e-mail start-up Superhuman

      1 July 2025

      Apple considers ditching its own AI in Siri overhaul

      1 July 2025

      Jony Ive’s first AI gadget could be … a pen

      30 June 2025
    • In-depth

      Siemens is battling Big Tech for AI supremacy in factories

      24 June 2025

      The algorithm will sing now: why musicians should be worried about AI

      20 June 2025

      Meta bets $72-billion on AI – and investors love it

      17 June 2025

      MultiChoice may unbundle SuperSport from DStv

      12 June 2025

      Grok promised bias-free chat. Then came the edits

      2 June 2025
    • TCS

      TCS | Connecting Saffas – Renier Lombard on The Lekker Network

      7 July 2025

      TechCentral Nexus S0E4: Takealot’s big Post Office jobs plan

      4 July 2025

      TCS | Tech, townships and tenacity: Spar’s plan to win with Spar2U

      3 July 2025

      TCS+ | First Distribution on the latest and greatest cloud technologies

      27 June 2025

      TCS+ | First Distribution on data governance in hybrid cloud environments

      27 June 2025
    • Opinion

      In defence of equity alternatives for BEE

      30 June 2025

      E-commerce in ICT distribution: enabler or disruptor?

      30 June 2025

      South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

      17 June 2025

      AI and the future of ICT distribution

      16 June 2025

      Singapore soared – why can’t we? Lessons South Africa refuses to learn

      13 June 2025
    • Company Hubs
      • Africa Data Centres
      • AfriGIS
      • Altron Digital Business
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Altron Group
      • Arctic Wolf
      • AvertITD
      • Braintree
      • CallMiner
      • CambriLearn
      • CYBER1 Solutions
      • Digicloud Africa
      • Digimune
      • Domains.co.za
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • Incredible Business
      • iONLINE
      • Iris Network Systems
      • LSD Open
      • NEC XON
      • Network Platforms
      • Next DLP
      • Ovations
      • Paracon
      • Paratus
      • Q-KON
      • SevenC
      • SkyWire
      • Solid8 Technologies
      • Telit Cinterion
      • Tenable
      • Vertiv
      • Videri Digital
      • Wipro
      • Workday
    • Sections
      • AI and machine learning
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud services
      • Contact centres and CX
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Electronics and hardware
      • Energy and sustainability
      • Enterprise software
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Lifestyle
      • Motoring
      • Public sector
      • Retail and e-commerce
      • Science
      • SMEs and start-ups
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Events
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home » Company News » A human-centric approach to protect against cybersecurity threats

    A human-centric approach to protect against cybersecurity threats

    By Anne Simpson28 April 2021
    Twitter LinkedIn Facebook WhatsApp Email Telegram Copy Link
    News Alerts
    WhatsApp

    The start of 2020 brought a huge change to businesses as the world found itself faced with a pandemic that would change the way we live, shop, and work. Almost overnight, the office environment went quiet, and the home office was introduced to a sea of employees who did not have the proper equipment or space to accommodate this new way of working. On top of not having a proper office chair at home, employees would be asked to work from a new network with implications for the company they are working for. While some companies were prepared to accommodate remote workers, the rise in cyberattacks in 2020 is a strong indication as to the vulnerabilities that came into existence with the home office.

    In a report generated by Interpol at the end of 2020, it was found that due to a dependency of online work and communication, cybercriminals found new opportunities to exploit companies with lower defences through a remote workforce. A majority of the cyberattacks they found at the beginning of 2020 were attributed to phishing, scams and fraud¹. These are attempts to infiltrate a company using an unsuspecting company insider — meaning any single employee that is left unprotected by their company can be a threat to that company. One poor click in a phishing e-mail can mean an open door to a cybercriminal.

    Slowly, companies are adapting to find new ways to protect their employees both remotely and in the office

    This is not to say that there is malintent from employees within an organisation. Quite the opposite. Employees are merely a victim of inescapable human error. In the 2020 Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) from Verizon, it was found that while hacking remains the most common action attributed to a breach, it saw a decline last year while there was a steady increase in the frequency of error as the attributed action. According to that same report, “there is no getting away from the fact that people can, and frequently do, make mistakes and many of them probably work for you”².

    Categorical issue

    While insider risks are understood to be a contributing factor to a breach, it has only recently become accepted as a categorical issue that can be addressed. Slowly, companies are adapting to find new ways to protect their employees both remotely and in the office.

    Instead of pushing the blame onto employees who are working within their natural tendencies, companies should consider what changes can be made within an organisation to protect against outside threats that enter through inside means. Many companies maintain a data protection policy as part of their company handbook. The data protection policy is designed to be a guide for employees as they move about their general daily activities and assist when making decisions on behalf of the company. As important as this document is, quite often employees review the handbook only upon entering a company, even though handbooks tend to be updated periodically to keep up with ever-changing regulations and ideas. This dilemma is an inconvenient truth that is often overlooked but can make the difference between a secured company and a breached one.

    Teaching and reinforcing positive cyber hygiene among employees is one way in which they can help in defending against cyberattacks. This is the consistent and safe training of employees when they perform a manoeuvre that could compromise important data or open themselves up to a threat. This could be attaching a document with sensitive information to an outside source using a document sharing service or clicking on e-mail without reviewing the source.

    With practice and consistent guidance, it is possible to train employees with new programmes that help to curb unwanted behaviours, with notifications being made to the employees when one of these incidents is about to occur. The employee can learn in real-time why they cannot or should not perform this action. It can also be a comfort to the employees who know they are protected within this system of alerts, with additional options to anonymise which employee is connected to each incident – in other words, ensuring full visibility while maintaining privacy. With time, these actions will become habits. Human error is always likely to occur, but with incident-based training, employees and companies can better protect themselves from outside risks.

    The future of work has changed, with employees working remotely and some back in an office. To accommodate these changes, employers need to make changes now to better protect their employees to better protect their data. The cost of a breach can soar into the hundreds of thousands of rand, depending on the extent and industry. The educated workforce is a company’s best defence against this threat.

    Sources
    ¹Interpol, Cybercrime: Covid-19 Impact, August 2020
    ²Verizon, Data Breach Investigation Report 2020, pages 13-14

    About Ava
    Ava is a global technology company with offices in the UK, Norway and the US. They believe that they can create a better, smarter way to deliver security. Ava injects intelligence into their approach to security and all their solutions. For more, visit www.avasecurity.com. Or find Ava on LinkedIn or YouTube.

    • Ava Security solutions are available through regional partner Solid8 Technologies — www.solid8.co.za
    • The author, Anne Simpson, is marketing manager for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Ava Security
    • This promoted content was paid for by the party concerned


    Anne Simpson Ava Ava Security Solid8 Solid8 Technologies
    Subscribe to TechCentral Subscribe to TechCentral
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email Copy Link
    Previous ArticleMicrosoft may revamp bug disclosures after suspected leak
    Next Article Altron Heps to fall on Bytes disposal, weak economy

    Related Posts

    A CISO’s guide to modern security observability

    20 May 2025

    Seraphic secures $29m to strengthen browser security for businesses

    27 February 2025

    Anjuna Northstar: first-of-its-kind AI data fusion clean room, now available to all

    12 December 2024
    Company News

    Samsung unfolds the future with thinnest, lightest Galaxy Z Fold yet

    9 July 2025

    Huawei supercharges South African SMEs with over 20 new eKit products

    9 July 2025

    Webtonic cracks the talent code with AWS-powered TonicHub

    9 July 2025
    Opinion

    In defence of equity alternatives for BEE

    30 June 2025

    E-commerce in ICT distribution: enabler or disruptor?

    30 June 2025

    South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

    17 June 2025

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2025 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.