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// EDITOR ’ S QUESTION ?
ALAIN PENEL , VICE PRESIDENT MIDDLE EAST , TURKEY AND CIS AT FORTINET
M any SMEs are often unprepared for cybersecurity threats that lurk online and 71 % of businesses with less than 500 employees confirmed or believed they had a security incident in 2021 , according to Fortinet ’ s report on the State of Small Business Security . SMEs often have the perception that their small size isn ’ t attractive to cybercriminals , however , SMEs must understand that cybercrime is a profitable and organised business and where there is financial gain , it ’ s lucrative for cybercriminals , regardless of their size .
SMEs are also easy victims because they look to accelerate their growth with advanced technology but lack the necessary security systems or the right resources to mitigate or protect their infrastructure .
They need to have well trained and skilled individuals who can help keep their businesses safe from possible cyberthreats and attacks . Cybersecurity continues to become more commonplace in our dayto-day lives , the value and need to have IT security professionals on staff is rising , increasing budgets to hire and retain these individuals . For 2022 , participants reported an average increase of 5 % to their previous year ’ s security budget .
One way of doing this is to ensure that their existing resources update and grade their certifications and trainings .
As part of the Fortinet NSE Training Institute , the Education Outreach Programme extends to various sectors , including academia , government and non-profits to ensure all populations – such as women , minorities and veterans – are provided with opportunities for a career in cyber . The Fortinet Training Institute achieved the milestone of over 1 million NSE certifications issued to date ( October 2022 ).
The eight-level training and certification programme is designed to provide technical professionals with independent validation of their security and networking skills as well as work experience . Fortinet ’ s 2022 Global Skills Gap report revealed that 95 % of leaders believe technology-focused certifications positively impact their role and their team , while 81 % of leaders prefer to hire people with certifications .
Any company looking to further protect their security posture by advancing all their employees ’ cyberskill sets and knowledge can easily deploy the Fortinet Training Institute ’ s Security Awareness and Training Service . The Fortinet Security Awareness and Training service provides timely end-user awareness training on cybersecurity threats . It assists an organisation ’ s leaders of IT , security and compliance in establishing a cybersecurity awareness culture where employees recognise cyberthreats immediately and avoid falling victim to them . The training service also helps satisfy regulatory or industry compliance training requirements for organisations that need to comply .
The cybersecurity skills gap is an issue that has plagued the industry for years and can affect how successful cybercriminals are when teams are strained and don ’ t have the right talent . Fortinet made a commitment in September of 2021 to train 1 million people in cybersecurity over five years between 2022 – 2026 and is on track to meet this through various initiatives . �
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SMES ARE ALSO EASY VICTIMS BECAUSE THEY LOOK TO ACCELERATE THEIR GROWTH WITH ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY BUT LACK THE NECESSARY SECURITY SYSTEMS OR THE RIGHT RESOURCES TO MITIGATE OR PROTECT THEIR INFRASTRUCTURE .
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