Center for Internet Security Offers Safety Tips for Cybersecurity Awareness Month
The theme for 2021 is ‘Do Your Part. #BeCyberSmart,’ helping to empower individuals and organizations to own their role in protecting their part of cyberspace.
EAST GREENBUSH, N.Y., Oct. 12, 2021 – Ransomware. Malware. Phishing. Threat actors. Zero Trust. They are more than just tech industry buzz words; they are very real issues facing us every time we open a web browser, check our email, or launch an app on our phone. The Center for Internet Security, Inc. (CIS®) is offering important information on the most common dangers and how to protect businesses, homes, and families. We have a full team of cyber experts available to speak about what you need to know.
Doing Our Part
Each of us has a responsibility to do our part to protect ourselves and others online. Being able to identify the dangers not only keeps your own information safe, it also prevents it from spreading to others in your network via email and social connections.
Spot the Dangers
Recent FBI statistics show a 62% increase in ransomware attacks in 2021. Ransomware locks your computer or network’s data, in exchange for payment. Ransomware attacks have made headlines for their high-profile victims like the Colonial Pipeline, but it can happen to anyone. Phishing is another tactic attackers use; their methods often prey on emotion and sense of urgency to compel victims to click links in emails and text messages.
What You Can Do
Much like handwashing and other good personal hygiene helps prevent illness and the spread of germs to others, practicing essential cyber hygiene helps prevent users from becoming victims of cyber-attacks, and spreading malware to others in their network. Multi-factor authentication (MFA) and making sure all devices are up-to-date are two examples of essential cyber hygiene.
What CIS Offers
CIS is committed to making the connected world a safer place. Our website: cisecurity.org offers free online safety tips, as well as low and no-cost programs to offer assistance in protecting small and large businesses, as well as state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) government entities.
Upcoming Events to Celebrate Cybersecurity Awareness Month
- October 18 begins Cybersecurity Career Week. There are wonderful opportunities for the best and brightest students in America who are interested in careers in cybersecurity to earn internships, college grants, and scholarships. Learn more at uscyberchallenge.org.
- The MS-ISAC Kid’s Safe Online Poster Contest kicked off October 1 and runs through January 21, 2022. Students in grades K-12 are encouraged to create a poster highlighting important aspects of cybersecurity. Through the poster contest, kids learn basic safety tips and how to protect themselves when gaming online, on social media, and in virtual classrooms. The top 4 winners will be featured in the MS-ISAC cybersecurity awareness posters, and the top 13 winners from across the country will be featured in the 2022 Kids Safe Online Activity Book. Information for the poster contest can be found here.
Cybersecurity Awareness Month – observed every October – was created as a collaborative effort between government and industry to ensure every American has the resources they need to stay safer and more secure online. It is sponsored by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA).
About CIS:
The Center for Internet Security, Inc. (CIS®) makes the connected world a safer place for people, businesses, and governments through our core competencies of collaboration and innovation. We are a community-driven nonprofit, responsible for the CIS Critical Security Controls® and CIS Benchmarks™, globally recognized best practices for securing IT systems and data. We lead a global community of IT professionals to continuously refine these standards to proactively safeguard against emerging threats. Our CIS Hardened Images® provide secure, on-demand, scalable computing environments in the cloud. CIS is home to the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center® (MS-ISAC®), the trusted resource for cyber threat prevention, protection, response, and recovery for U.S. State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial (SLTT) government entities, and the Elections Infrastructure Information Sharing and Analysis Center® (EI-ISAC®), which supports the cybersecurity needs of U.S. election offices. To learn more, visit CISecurity.org or follow us on Twitter: @CISecurity.
Contact:
Kelly Wyland
CIS Media Relations Manager
518-256-6978