At (ISC)² our vision is to inspire a safe and secure cyber world. Our members and the greater cyber community help to make this possible through (ISC)² Chapters and individual volunteer opportunities that promote cyber education and cyber safe practices. For this interview, we connected with KnowBe4, a company that works with its employees to encourage outreach opportunities to promote and further cyber education and discuss how other companies can create a similar model.
Why does KnowBe4 prioritize cyber awareness training?
The foundation of KnowBe4 was built on spreading security awareness training to employees to help better protect their organizations. It is important to support cyber awareness training to improve the overall security culture of organizations. It is still a relatively new market for security awareness training, with programs being around for a little over ten years now.
How does KnowBe4 share cyber safety education?
KnowBe4 engages with various charitable initiatives that focus on cyber safety education in the community. We support training initiatives at the University of South Florida, teach users how to make better cyber security decisions online and how to stay safe working remotely and create a tool kit for cybersecurity education month along with dozens of free resources. We have contributed to numerous “capture the flag” events at local colleges, assisted law enforcement agencies with training initiatives, provide resources for youth and are in the process of developing many more. Our panel of security experts delivers hundreds of educational video lectures and presentations throughout the year.
KnowBe4 has also developed an educational program called the Jumpstart Program, which helps underrepresented communities get technical work experience. The program is a paid opportunity designed for individuals with little or no experience to help develop their technical skills, pursue further education and gain professional experience. It is specifically designed to promote technical learning with on-the-job experience.
Who drives your education initiatives and how can other companies implement a similar program?
For the most part, KnowBe4 employees in the security awareness advocates group lead these efforts. Several of these employees volunteer to educate community groups, such as children and seniors, about how to stay safe online. Other companies can gauge interest from their employees to see who would like to participate in cyber safety education initiatives that will help to better support the community. Getting involved in helping the community is positive for a company’s image and employee morale. KnowBe4 also offers a number of scholarship programs to a diverse group of students pursuing further education. These scholarships help women, Black Americans and veterans who are studying cybersecurity, which contributes to alleviating the shortage in the cybersecurity industry.
Learn how you can contribute to cyber education while connecting with your peers at https://www.isc2.org/Volunteer.