Among all the scary stories about cybercrime, security breaches, the loss of critical data and the illegal selling of customers’ personal details, there is a natural tendency to focus on approaches to hardening IT systems. It might come as a bit of a surprise to learn that the single biggest cyber threat is your staff. Our managed IT services team in Denver examines why and how it can be remediated.

Your People Are Human

Your employees are humans, and the reality is that— humans are imperfect. Humans can make mistakes. Sometimes, those are wonderful mistakes; and sometimes, they’re less welcome. So, rather than outside threats, your business can suffer from a little forgetfulness or sloppiness of your people.

Your People Need to Get Their Jobs Done

Sometimes, your employees can see work systems or policies as obstructions rather than facilitating their work. They may find ‘slick’ ways to work around something that prevents them from getting work done. They may fall back on shortcuts. They may fail to log out of a system or they may leave important documents sitting on their desks rather than filing them away securely.

Your People May Not Understand Security Threats

Your employees may be highly skilled and experienced in their particular work. But if they’re not IT engineers, they might not fully appreciate the security risks or the hazards they’re creating due to their working processes. They may not understand the importance of managed IT services experts in Denver in securing IT systems.

Your People Are Vulnerable to Social Engineering

Social engineering attack uses deceit or other underhanded means to get your employees to divulge information (not necessarily outright secrets) that cybercriminals can use to perpetrate hacks or fraud. Your staff may not be able to recognize a phishing attempt or a risky file attached to an email.

The Upshot

You can see how, even with the best IT systems in the world, your business can still be left at risk by your employees. By recognizing these inherent risks and taking the right steps, you and your employees can radically reduce these dangers. Formulate corporate policies in light of these hazards. Encode them in communication, training and the programming of your IT systems. For assistance, you can employ our managed IT services team in Denver to keep your business, employees, and customers safe. At AccountabilIT, Inc., we can help you shape your organization’s security. To find out more, contact us now!