Cyber Security 101 and Its Importance

Over the past few years, cyber security risks have been at an all-time high.  It’s become increasingly important to be aware of hidden threats when online.  To better protect our employees, Colas implemented an organization-wide “Cyber Hour” that took place this past spring with over 31,000 participants.  The goal was, to educate on safe online practices, and bring awareness to hidden threats targeting accounts and devices.  Colas ISS led and actively participated in this effort by building a curriculum based on the security tickets and industry threats we see every day.

Choose a complex password:  Company’s security policy, requires a user to change their password every 6 months.  The user should choose a strong password every few months for both business accounts and devices.  The password you choose must have a combination of numbers, letters, and symbols that are easy for the person to remember.  Keeping personal passwords and work passwords separate is one of the best industry practices.

Importance of multifactor authentication: First off, multi-factor authentication is an essential part of securing information.  Typically, the encryptions used are hard for hackers to decode. On top of that, even if it may take a little extra time from the user side, using MFA provides a significant amount of peace of mind to know that your information is secured.

Avoid Phishing: Avoid opening any text messages or email links from unknown senders.  Hackers tend to use as much accurate information as possible when targeting an individual.  It’s common to have an email or text come in with familiar names or information that may entice users to open it.  If it doesn’t look right, report it to ServiceNow and we’ll have our security experts follow up.

Staying safe can sometimes be confusing.  If something sent to your device looks suspicious, don’t hesitate to contact ISS through SupportNow.

ServiceNow: https://colas.service-now.com/sp