Explain the Cost

Your workers may not worry about a computer problem such as a data breach. Teach your employees about the potential cost of a data hack by letting them know that the average data breach costs a company $221 per compromised record.
For major corporations, a hack costs more than $7 million on average. For your small business, losing even a few hundred files could bankrupt you. Your employees may not understand the accounting, but they'll appreciate the danger of unemployment. Show them how a single data breach could cost everyone a job.

Train Them in Safe Data-Handling Practices

Research suggests that 75 percent of websites are unsafe, making people who visit these sites vulnerable to malware. This alarming number reveals how many website owners don’t take data security seriously. You can use this information to train your employees: Teach them that major sites such as Yahoo! and LinkedIn have suffered data breaches. Any workers who have visited these sites are now potential fraud victims.

By relaying this information, you’ll share a simple lesson with your employees. An individual has to take personal responsibility for internet usage. People who don’t are in danger of having private data hacked. Again, personalizing the situation will get your employees' attention. Once your team understands the problem, you can teach them how to use the internet safely while they're at work.

Give Management Training

Some of your employees may still ignore their training, but you can have a fallback option. Offer special management training to your mid-level and upper-level executives. Let them know during these classes that they're responsible for the actions of their teams. This tactic will add a layer of oversight to the process.

Offer Incentives for Following Security Practices

Given the cost of every hacked data record, you have a clear goal as a business owner: You must protect your data at all costs. Rather than risk a devastating financial loss, start an incentive program for your employees.

A savvy owner can offer many free rewards to workers. For example, you want your staff to update passwords at least twice each year. Employees may hate the idea of changing passwords, but to change that feeling, start giving away pieces of cake on the days when you require the password change. The process won’t have a negative reaction if it comes with a delicious dessert. Get creative with your incentives so that you can train your workers to follow the correct security practices. As a business owner, you have to safeguard your company's data to protect your business integrity. The suggestions above will help you safeguard these most vulnerable areas of your company.