The annual European Cybersecurity Month is approaching fast. Ever since 2020, GÉANT has been putting its weight behind this initiative with a large-scale awareness campaign. This year, the initiative is entirely dedicated to the topic of social engineering and will feature the tagline “Your brain is the first line of defence”.
Cyber criminals use all kinds of manipulation techniques to trick people into revealing confidential information. They are based on fundamental psychological principles of influence and persuasion such as authority, reciprocity and liking. Social engineers are aware of these human biases and take advantage of them in a variety of ways.
With this campaign, GÉANT wants to encourage users to think critically and remain vigilant so that they can always stay one step ahead of cyber criminals.
Follow the adventures of Jake Doubt
In our four-part campaign video series, we follow the adventures of Jake Doubt, Head of the Security Team at Guilder University. He decides to investigate when, several colleagues within the university, start receiving unusual requests. In a playful manner, the series covers topics such as spear phishing, romance scams and tailgating. Throughout the videos, Jake discovers, step by step, who is behind the social engineering attempts and what are their motives. The videos are based on a fictional story, but they nonetheless give a good insight into the various manipulation techniques used by social engineers.
Stay alert and think critically
To protect ourselves from social engineers, we humans have a powerful weapon: our brain! Often all you need is to take a moment to think critically. Is this request realistic? Who is the sender of the message? Why am I getting this call out of the blue? The key message of Cybersecurity Month 2024 is clear: take your time to assess situations and think critically, especially when you feel a sense of urgency developing in any conversations and exchanges.
Tips and tricks
You may remember our Cyber Heroes from last year. Well, we have good news: our experts are back with more tips and tricks to protect you from cyber criminals! Being safe online is much easier once you know what to look out for.
Webinar programme
What would Cybersecurity Month be without our webinar programme? For the fourth consecutive year, you are invited to a series of free webinars with experts from the international R&E community.
Confirmed speakers
- Dr Karen Renaud from the University of Strathclyde on Insider threats
- Luisa Verdoliva, professor at the University of Naples on New security threats posed by AI
- Kristin Weber, Professor from the Technical University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt on Social Engineering
Whether you are working as a security analyst, CISO or are responsible for internal or external security awareness initiatives, we are sure you’ll find useful content relevant to your requirements!
The full programme will be announced soon, so keep an eye on the CONNECT website.
Help us to promote the campaign!
The strength of the our Cybersecurity Month campaigns lies in the close collaboration with NRENs. You can support “Your brain is the first line of defence” by spreading the news in your community. The campaign materials will be available soon and will consist of a logo pack, a banner, an email signature and of course a variety of video materials. All materials can be (re)used FREE of charge, but we kindly ask you to respect the embargo dates as we wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise. Also, keep an eye on GÉANT’s social media accounts (LinkedIn, Mastodon, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube) and share / like our posts. We will use the hashtags #CyberSecMonth and #CSM24.
Get involved!
We would love to hear from you! Please share your reactions, suggestions and comments with us via csm@geant.org.
