Intelligent CIO APAC Issue 32 | Page 26

TRENDING was nominated by 40 % of respondents . This was followed by malware ( 29 %) and ransomware ( 23 %).
Mark Lukie , Director of Solution Architects –
APAC , Barracuda
More encouragingly , 41 % said the link was flagged as malicious by their organization ’ s IT systems , while a further 21 % said a red flag was raised by their web browser . Less than a quarter ( 20 %) said they became aware only after their device had become infected by malware or ransomware .
Invest in improved user training
When mapping out their staff training schedules for the coming year , the survey highlights the need for financial organizations to allocate more time and resources to cybersecurity awareness .
The survey found 92 % of employees believe cybersecurity is either very or extremely important , however , more than one in three ( 37 %) said they had not received training in any aspect of the topic .
Of those that had received training , 42 % said it had been focused on phishing attacks while email security
Asked to reveal the number of hours they had spent in cybersecurity awareness training during the past year , 43 % admitted it had either been none at all or less than one hour . A further 32 % of respondents said they had received between one and three hours , with just 9 % receiving four and five hours .
When it comes to sharing the results of cybersecurity awareness training with other staff , 43 % of those surveyed said this did occur . A further 34 % said this didn ’ t happen while 23 % were unsure .
Experience shows that sharing results can be a good way to reinforce employee awareness and understanding of the scale of the shared security challenge faced by everyone . It also reinforces the message that an organization is taking the challenge seriously and undertaking steps to ensure that overall security standards are being raised .
By increasing the focus on cybersecurity training , a FinTech firm can ensure it is better placed to avoid potentially damaging attacks . The result will be greater awareness among staff and a more secure workplace .
Leading by example
Interestingly , the survey also revealed that senior managers are more likely to cause security issues than junior members of staff . This is because a higher proportion of managers admitted they circumvent security controls as part of their day-to-day activity .
When asked whether they use unauthorized third-party software or cloud services , more than half ( 52 %) of senior managers confirmed this was the case compared with an average of 44 % across all survey respondents . The gap was even starker when it came to carrying out computer system updates where 63 % of senior managers admitted they had done this . This is compared to 32 % of all respondents .
These results are particularly surprising because the survey found 66 % of senior staff considered they were ‘ extremely ’ aware of the importance of cybersecurity compared with the survey average of 53 %. It ’ s clear that more managers need to lead by example .
The issue of cybersecurity is going to remain significant across the finance sector . Management teams , therefore , need to urgently put in place all the elements required to ensure comprehensive protection is achieved . p
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