We hope cooperatives will utilize the various Cybersecurity Awareness Month resources provided by NRECA, NCSA and CISA to share cybersecurity messaging with your internal and external audiences. NRECA's resources are detailed below; and NCSA's and CISA's information are accessible through these links:
We also encourage your cooperative to consider signing-up as an official Cybersecurity Awareness Month Champion. The goal of Cybersecurity Awareness Month is to promote personal accountability and positive behavior changes when it comes to cybersecurity - your cooperative is encouraged to help with this goal in whatever way works best for your cooperative.
This Year's Theme
The 2022 Cybersecurity Awareness Month theme is “See Yourself in Cyber," with a focus on four key behaviors:
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[accordion title="Main%20Theme%3A%20See%20Yourself%20in%20Cyber"]The overarching theme for Cybersecurity Awareness Month is “See Yourself in Cyber.” The goal of this theme is to emphasize that cybersecurity isn’t only a shared responsibility, it’s an individual responsibility. If everyone does their part – implementing stronger security practices, raising community awareness, educating vulnerable audiences or training employees – our interconnected world will be safer and more secure for everyone.[/accordion]
[accordion title="Key%20Behavior%201%3A%20Enable%20Multi-Factor%20Authentication%20"]Cybersecurity Tip: When you enable multi-factor authentication (also known as two-step verification), you’re making it twice as hard for cyber criminals to access your online account.[/accordion]
[accordion title="Key%20Behavior%202%3A%20Use%20Strong%20Passwords%20and%20a%20Password%20Manager"]Cybersecurity Tip: Create long, unique, complex passwords… and don’t pass on password managers! Password managers save time, work across all devices, protect your identity and can notify you of potential phishing websites.[/accordion]
[accordion title="Key%20Behavior%203%3A%20Recognize%20and%20Report%20Phishing%20Attacks"]Cybersecurity Tip: Don’t take the bait when cyber criminals go phishing! Avoid emails that look too good to be true, oddly urgent, poorly crafted or include unusual requests[/accordion]
[accordion title="Key%20Behavior%204%3A%20Update%20Software%20Regularly"]Cybersecurity Tip: One of the easiest ways to protect your personal data is to keep software and apps updated. When downloading a software update, make sure it’s coming straight from the company that created it. (Watch out for fake pop-ups that request urgent downloads!)[/accordion]
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