With so many organizations moving online, the way they recruit and welcome new talent is changing, too. Today, more employers hire digitally because it’s convenient, efficient, and effective — especially when building remote and hybrid teams. But there’s a serious downside that organizations can’t afford to ignore. Digital operations pose significant cybersecurity risks.
Cyber incidents disrupt operations, which in turn can decrease revenue and damage brand reputation. But just how big is this threat? Recent statistics paint a disturbing picture:
- Despite massive security initiatives at organizations worldwide, the rate of data breaches continues to grow. In fact, 2023 was the worst year yet, with incidents growing 20% over 2022.
What can your organization do to avoid these issues when bringing new team members onboard? By following the latest cybersecurity practices, you can ensure you onboard employees safely and securely.
How to Reduce Cybersecurity Risks Among New Hires
1. Provide a Security Briefing Before Onboarding Begins
A key step in managing employee cybersecurity risks is to kick off the onboarding process with a security briefing prior to Day One. This ensures that new hires are aware of potential security threats and are familiar with your company’s expectations about digital behavior, even before they step into a new role.
These briefings should cover critical topics such as how to recognize phishing attempts, which are among the top five security threats. Be sure to focus on helping participants understand cybersecurity fundamentals and reinforcing their responsibility in maintaining digital security.
This early experience ensures that new hires understand the importance of protecting your organization’s digital assets. It also helps them value security and compliance as integral aspects of your organization’s culture.
2. Offer a Secure Onboarding Portal
Many companies choose to use a centralized platform for employee onboarding. This can be a safe space for new hires to complete their paperwork and receive company information. However, HR must ensure that this digital environment is secure.
For instance, any portal should have strong encryption standards to protect personal details and confidential documents against unauthorized access. This helps HR manage new hire documentation and compliance more efficiently.
It’s also important to update the platform regularly, so you can identify and address new security threats. This ensures that you’ll comply with the latest data protection regulations.
In addition, you’ll want to train company leaders on how to use the portal effectively. For instance, training sessions should focus on essential security practices like password management. Every manager should know how to create strong passwords that meet the organization’s requirements, how to keep them secure, and how often to update them.
3. Establish Access Controls and User Privileges
For optimum security, you’ll want to implement a system that gives employees access to the various work-related systems and applications they need to use. This means onboarding managers need to grant necessary access, so each team member can perform their job function but nothing else.
By carefully assigning appropriate user privileges, you can reduce the risk of internal and external security breaches. This ensures that new hires won’t have access to systems and tools that aren’t related to their roles. It also prevents accidental or intentional misuse of sensitive information.
To implement this effectively, HR must define the level of access each new hire needs for every system they touch. Obviously, as their role evolves, their access needs are likely to change. That’s why regular reviews are important to ensure that access rights remain aligned with job requirements.
4. Train New Hires to Avoid Cybersecurity Risks
Digital security training should start as soon as a candidate accepts a job offer, and it should be integral to the onboarding process. It’s vital to cover all the basics, including how to spot threats, including phishing, malware and social engineering attacks. Managers should also incorporate real-life examples to illustrate how threats can manifest in each employee’s daily work activities.
In addition, it’s critical to be sure employees understand why and how to embrace secure practices in file sharing and multi-factor authentication. Consider creating a company-wide IT security policy and sharing this with employees in a handbook. By making this resource available to new hires, you can ensure they’re well-informed about digital security and their responsibilities in upholding your organization’s standards.
5. Include a Device and Network Security Orientation
Onboarding employees with a device and network security orientation is crucial to reinforce your organization’s cybersecurity framework. This should educate new hires about how to properly use company devices, stressing the importance of installing security updates on a timely basis.
It’s also vital to cover safe practices for remote work, such as how to secure a home Wi-Fi network and how to recognize unsafe connections.
You’ll also want to provide guidelines for using personal devices for work purposes, if applicable. This ensures that employees are aware of your organization’s security standards.
A focused orientation gives employees the knowledge they need to work securely, wherever they may be located. It also reduces the likelihood that they’ll inadvertently step outside the compliance lines. Ultimately, with a better-informed workforce, your company will be much better equipped to protect sensitive data from potential cyberthreats.
6. Assign a Security Point of Contact for New Employees
Every new employee should know who to contact about security issues. This way, they have an informed go-to person for reliable answers to questions or incidents they may encounter. The benefits of having a security point of contact include:
- Immediate assistance: New hires can quickly get help if they suspect a security breach or encounter something suspicious.
- Personalized guidance: A point of contact can provide the most relevant advice on security practices in a way that applies to each employee’s role.
- Feedback loop: New employees can improve organizational security measures by expressing concerns about security practices directly to the appropriate contact person.
- Stronger security culture: When employees work hand-in-hand with security specialists, you can establish a culture where this is everyone’s responsibility.
You can make the most of this strategy by assigning a contact with a solid understanding of the company’s cybersecurity policies. The right person(s) should also be approachable and demonstrate solid communication skills to ensure timely, thoughtful, thorough responses.
If you establish a security point of contact, it’s important to introduce all new hires to this person during the onboarding process. This ensures that they’ll develop a direct relationship with a person they can reach out to with questions or when they want to build their knowledge and skills.
Smart Onboarding Minimizes Cybersecurity Risks
Managing cybersecurity risks right from the start of each employee’s tenure is critical to protect your organization’s digital assets. But to create and maintain a secure environment, employers must develop workforce cybersecurity awareness, even before Day One. This kind of commitment ensures that you can build and maintain a security-conscious workforce that will be ready to face cybersecurity challenges now and in the future.
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