Silicon Prairie Cyber Services' Blog

You've heard me say this before, and I'm saying it again… your cybersecurity awareness program needs to be built with purpose. When you build your program with purpose, your program will be different from mine, Bill's, and Sally's. BUT… There are some topics that every cybersecurity awareness program needs to address, and I've got 5 HOT TOPICS YOU NEED TO INCLUDE IN YOUR PROGRAM Building a culture of cybersecurity – it's YOUR responsibility Cybersecurity isn't just my responsibility. It' isn't everyone else's responsibility. It's YOUR responsibility. Each person in your business makes a difference, and everyone needs to be invested in creating and maintaining a secure environment, and it starts with culture. Humans are the key to defending your business Tell your humans that they matter to you and why they matter. Social engineering Tell your humans what social engineering is, why it's being used, and how it's being used against them ...

If you’ve been following me for a while you’ve heard about phishing, but have you ever wondered how the email was crafted? Perhaps you’ve been duped before and didn’t realize it until it was too late, because it felt like a Jedi mind trick.   I think we do a really good job of telling everyone to watch out for phishing emails, and not to click on them. But I think as an industry we fall short when it comes to sharing how those emails are crafted, why they’re so dang irresistible, and what they can do to reduce their risk of receiving those super slick emails.   To close this knowledge gap I now offer an on-demand video training class called “ Social Engineering: The Art of the Click”   During this video training, you’ll learn • What social engineering is • How cybercriminals create an irresistible offer  • Why you want to click • How cybercriminals come after you AND • What you can do today to stop cybercriminals from preying on you   ...

The theme for Week 2 of Cybersecurity Awareness Month is Fight the Phish From the Colonial Pipeline to T-Mobile, cybersecurity attacks have been rampant over the last 12-24 months. However, for all the emerging threats and news that are cropping up, phishing continues to quietly wreak havoc, and remains a major threat to individuals and businesses. Don’t overlook phishing as a cyber risk. It’s been a major threat for decades. In fact, 43 percent of cyberattacks in 2020 featured phishing or pre-texting, while 74 percent of US organizations experienced a successful phishing attack last year alone. Phishing is one of the most dangerous and effective attacks methods used against your organization. As a result, you need to know how to fight the phish. 3 TIPS TO HELP YOU FIGHT THAT PHISH AND WIN Know the Red Flags Phishes are masters of making their content and interactions appealing. From content design to language, it's difficult to determine whether the content is genuine or a po...

Suddenly summer is over and pumpkin spice everything is out in full force, and that can only mean one thing…   Cybersecurity Awareness Month is coming.   That’s right, October 1 marks the start of Cybersecurity Awareness Month 2021!! Who else is excited?! This year’s theme is Do Your Part. #BeCyberSmart.  This year’s theme brings four new weekly themes, and provides you with some great opportunities to build relationships in your business.   As you’re churning out lots of awesome content and tips for Cybersecurity Awareness Month, I want to share some tips to keep in mind when your creative juices are flowing.   5 TIPS FOR WRITING CYBERSECURITY AWARENESS INFO Speak the language of business Keep it short and sweet Make your content mobile friendly Avoid technical jargon Don’t get lost in the weeds   Finally, if you need a guest speaker for Cybersecurity Awareness Month or need help planning I still have a few openings availab...

When I say ‘FlyTrap’ what comes to mind? A venus fly trap? ‘The Little Shop of Horrors’? A bug zapper? A strip of sticky tape with a bunch of flies stuck to it? Malware?   I hope you were thinking about malware because there’s some FlyTrap malware taking over Facebook Accounts, and it's been around since March.   How are they doing it? Social Engineering .   The bad guys have placed malicious apps in Google Play and other Android stores to lure you in with offers for free Netflix coupon codes and voting for your favorite soccer player or team. These apps look legit. They are high quality, use great graphics, and are free from grammar and spelling errors.   To get the code or to vote, you have to log in with your Facebook username and password. You are actually using Facebook to login, but unknown to the victim, there is something nefarious going on in the background, and it’s stealing their sensitive info.   WHAT TO DO IF THIS HAS ...