October is National Cyber Security AwarenessMonth (NCASM). NCSAM was launched by the National Cyber Security Alliance &the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in October 2004.  Each year NCASM chooses a different theme forCyber Security Awareness.  The theme for this year is ‘Own IT. Secure. IT. Protect IT.’, helping to encourage personal accountability and proactive behavior in digital privacy, security best practices, common cyber threats and cybersecurity careers. Own It·     Never Click and Tell: staying safe on social media·     Update Privacy Settings·     Keep Tabs on Your Apps: best practices for devic eapplicationsSecurityIT·     Shake Up Your Passphrase Protocol: create strong,unique passphrases·     Double Your Login Protection: turn on multi-factorauthentication·     Shop Safe Online·     Play Hard To Get With Strangers: how to spot and avoid phishProtectIT·     If You Connect, You Must Protect: updating to the latest security software, web browser and operating systems·     Stay Protected While Connected: Wi-Fi safety·     If You Collect It, Protect It: keeping customer/consumer data and information safeCybersecurity awareness is not just for business stakeholders.It is an important component of everyday life. By promoting and providing awareness we can help to keep individuals and businesses safe online.  Each year NCASM also releases a new Cybersecurity Awareness toolkit which is available for download. NCASM promotes the importance of cybersecurity awareness for both the individual and businesses and provides resources for promoting cybersecurity awareness, mitigating risks and developing best practices. The toolkit, which is not just aimed for just the month of October, is a great resource for use throughout the year either for individuals or business stakeholders.   Steve Reinkemeyer, President and CEO of Report Information Assurance, LLC. stated ‘cybersecurity awareness is an ongoing and critical component of personal and business life”. The National Cybersecurity Awareness Month 2019 Toolkit can be found at the following linkhttps://niccs.us-cert.gov/sites/default/files/documents/pdf/dhs_ncsam2019_toolkit_508c.pdf?trackDocs=dhs_ncsam2019_toolkit_508c.pdf Resources:https://staysafeonline.org/ncsam/themes/

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Gaithersburg, MD, USA