While phishing depends on the idea that a typical employee is too busy or inattentive to spot a threat, cyber blackmailers attempt to scare people into paying money out of fear of exposing their data. Phishing attacks encourage employees to click on a link quickly or to immediately change their password unless they want to face unpleasant consequences, such as losing access to an indispensable app. To exploit the human factor, even more, phishing attacks often include a sense of urgency, or a reward, especially during holiday periods, when companies are known to give bonuses to employees. Phishing attacks take advantage of the employees’ trust, busyness, or occasional inattention. Operating under the premise that people are likely to make mistakes, cybercriminals target employees with various social engineering techniques and other attacks. The term “human firewall” represents a group of people protecting their company from cyber threats by demonstrating digitally secure behaviour, showing sensitivity to cyber dangers, and communicating with the IT department whenever they encounter any issues.īy developing a human firewall, businesses can counteract cybercriminals’ attempts, who often use employees as a gateway into the company’s systems. Such errors are the leading cause of data breaches. Many companies try to protect themselves from such an outcome with progressive technologies and developed solutions, but in some cases, they need to remember one key factor: human error. If the sensitive digital information were to find its way into the wrong hands somehow, the entire business, as well as the security of its partners or clients, could be endangered. What is a human firewall? And how can you develop one? The meaning behind a human firewallĪs the digital world continues to develop, companies are working with more significant amounts of sensitive data.

The concept of a human firewall works with this premise.

While all of these are essential to building your company’s security, the staff stand on the front lines and are the most susceptible to becoming both targets and tools of cyber threats. Many people highlight digital security's technical aspects: endpoint security, password managers, and encryption.