Security user awareness and training and best practices for employees

Security user awareness and training is the process of educating employees about cybersecurity and data privacy. It aims to increase the knowledge, skills, and behavior of employees to protect themselves and the organization from various cyber threats. User awareness and training is an important component of data protection and security, as it can help prevent or mitigate human errors that often lead to cyber incidents.

Government institutions should carry out regular user awareness and training for all staff who use the institutions’ software systems. It should cover the following areas:

i.    The types and sources of cyber threats and how to recognize and avoid them
ii.    The policies and procedures for data protection and security in the organization
iii.    The roles and responsibilities of employees in ensuring data protection and security
iv.    The best practices and tips that can be adopted by employees to enhance data protection and security. These include:

1. Using strong passwords and changing passwords regularly
2. Enabling multi-factor authentication whenever possible
3. Updating software regularly
4. Avoiding clicking on links or attachments in unsolicited or suspicious emails
5. Taking caution when using public or unsecured Wi-Fi networks

v.    The steps to take in case of a cyber incident or a data breach include reporting such incidents as soon as possible.