Inside Small Business: Why small businesses need to reconsider their social media posts

Guidelines for staff

Employees can be a workplace’s biggest risk, with 47 per cent of Australian respondents reporting security naive employees as a concern in Mimecast’s State of Email Security Report, so it’s crucial to have strong guidelines in place for staff to follow. This is particularly important for social media as the line is blurred between personal and professional use.

Guidelines should be clear, concise and easy to digest for all employees. This should include:

• Clear ruling around what can and cannot be shared on both corporate and professional accounts.
• Examples of general scams and suspicious links for employees to be cautious of, as well as a list of trusted apps.
• Background into why it’s important to be cautious, once something is in public it can be hard to remove.
• A contact list/clear process for staff to report any security concerns.
• Tips on less obvious risks, including sharing images with confidential information in the background or location information, and filling out forms/quizzes online providing hackers with golden information.