Singapore’s workers getting more security training - KnowBe4

KnowBe4 has released new research, which shows that 53% of Singaporean office workers are getting frequent security training from their employers.

KnowBe4 says this latest statistic is encouraging, as it is an increase of 7% compared to 46% of workers in 2021.

Further, 41% (compared to 35% in 2021) say this training includes receiving simulated phishing emails.

In addition, 34% of Singaporean office workers have never received cybersecurity training at work, a 3% decline from 2021's 37%.

The finding is part of the company's wider research, which looks at how much training employees in Asia Pacific are getting in cybersecurity, as the region is impacted by a number of high-profile data breaches.

"Our latest Phishing Benchmarking Report shows that untrained users pose the greatest risk to organisations, so it is crucial to ensure that they are properly trained to understand the risks and the role they play in helping to protect their organisations," says Jacqueline Jayne, Security Awareness Advocate APAC at KnowBe4.

"Threat levels are increasing across the region, and last year's breaches heightened Singapore's awareness of data security, so it's a great relief to see this increase in security training at Singaporean organisations.

"To encourage participation and to make security awareness training compelling and relevant to employees, it really needs to be high-quality, timely and easily digestible."

Breaking down the statistics of office workers who received regular cybersecurity training in the workplace, 72% are more likely to get this training online, compared to 37% in person.

Of those who had in-person training, 73% had it delivered to them as part of a group through a lecture or presentation format, and 35% say the training was one-on-one.

54% note it was short sessions of two hours or under, and 24% say it was a full-day or half-day session.

Moreover, 59% had online learning bitesize sessions of 30 minutes maximum, while 52% had online learning sessions of 30 minutes or longer.

"Given the shift to fully remote and hybrid office environments these days, it is no surprise that we see more training delivered in an online format compared to in person," Jayne says.

"Bite-sized, online learning modules are becoming more popular and relevant as attention spans decrease and demand for short but effective educational information increases.

"By incorporating more secure practices and behaviours that they have learned from security awareness training into their everyday routine, employees will be better positioned to make smarter security decisions and improve overall security culture."