CSA's Cybersecurity Awareness Month 2024

Building cyber resilience with security tips and resources for all.

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The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) is a not-for-profit dedicated to defining cloud computing security best practices. Our expert-backed and vendor-neutral research guides individuals and organizations across the globe.

With rising cyber threats and an ever-expanding attack surface, remaining resilient in the face of security incidents is more important now than ever. This October, help us raise awareness about the proactive security measures that everyone, even non-security professionals, should follow.

What is Cybersecurity Awareness Month?

Cybersecurity Awareness Month is an initiative led by CISA and the National Cybersecurity Alliance. Each year, this month-long campaign brings together government, industry, and academia across the globe. The ultimate goal is to ensure that everyone has the knowledge and tools they need to stay safe online.

The staggering statistics listed below emphasize the importance of cybersecurity in 2024, especially when it comes to individual employees and their actions:

  • There is a 3.4 million shortage of cybersecurity professionals worldwide. (NIST)
  • 54% of organizations have experienced a cybersecurity incident in the past year. (Cisco)
  • Phishing attacks increased by 58.2% in 2023 compared to 2022. (Zscaler)
  • 68% of breaches in 2024 involved mistakes by non-malicious insiders. (Verizon)
  • Over 35% of cloud security incidents in 2023 occurred from attackers’ use of valid, compromised credentials. Credentials made up nearly 90% of assets for sale on dark web marketplaces. (IBM)

The easiest way to begin tackling these challenges is to educate all professionals on the simple steps they can take. Cybersecurity isn't just a responsibility for IT or security professionals; it's something we all share. No matter your role, everyone within an organization plays a critical part in maintaining a secure environment.

Fundamentals for All

By taking small, everyday actions, you can help reduce risk and strengthen the security posture of your organization. Here are four simple but impactful tips to follow:

  1. Use strong passwords and a password manager
  2. Turn on multi-factor authentication
  3. Recognize and report phishing
  4. Update software

Explore further with these free resources for beginners:

Guidance for Professionals

Protecting you and your customers’ sensitive information is imperative for the longevity and security of your business. Elevate the security posture of your organization by diving into our extended guidance for professionals:

  1. Passwords: By leveraging the latest in cryptographic techniques and FIDO standards, Passkeys significantly enhance security while simplifying the user authentication process. Learn more about Passkeys and how your organization can move towards passwordless authentication.
  2. Identity and Access Management (IAM): The threat landscape has significantly changed over the years. We're at the point where IAM is a core component of any digital access model. Understand the benefits, challenges, and best practices of IAM.
  3. Security Threats: As business models and security tactics have evolved, certain critical security issues have become more relevant. Key issues today include misconfigurations, inadequate change control, and insecure APIs. Review the eleven top threats CSA identified for 2024.
  4. Zero Trust Security: Zero Trust is the concept that no part of a computer and networking system can be implicitly trusted, including the humans operating it. Therefore, we must assure that systems and their components are operating under a “least privilege” model and continuously verified. Download NIST’s comprehensive Zero Trust Architecture.

Explore further with these free resources for professionals:

Access the Complete Bundle of CSA’s Cybersecurity Awareness Month Resources

You can always learn more when it comes to cybersecurity. CSA has compiled several of our foundational research and guidance publications in one central location. Arm yourself with knowledge and do your part to address cyber risk and secure our world.