A powerful new tool for senior management to improve their cyber security awareness

AVeS Cyber Security uses Kaspersky Interactive Protection Simulation (KIPS) as part of its user awareness portfolio. 

AVeS Cyber Security, a South Africa-based specialist IT governance and architectural services company, is the first certified trainer in Africa for Kaspersky Interactive Protection Simulation (KIPS). Using KIPS, AVeS Cyber Security equips top managers in SMEs and enterprises with game-changing cyber security awareness skills to help them make more informed cyber security decisions for their businesses.

Businesses are always looking for effective ways to influence employee behaviour, eliminate cyber attacks resulting from carelessness, and boost the cyber security awareness of senior management teams so that they can play their part in the overall cyber-safety of the organisation.

Workshops, conferences, meetings and training sessions hardly ever really excite employees. Yet, it is still important to find solutions to educate business leaders on resisting targeted attacks, preventing fraud and protecting industrial facilities.

Cyber security through gaming

The Kaspersky Interactive Protection Simulation (KIPS) is a gamified tool to cultivate strong cyber-safety skills within a company, starting with its leadership teams.

It incorporates a team-based, industry-specific board game with multilingual online tools to increase awareness of and improve decision-making in the risks and security problems of running modern computerised systems.

AVeS Cyber Security uses Kaspersky Interactive Protection Simulation (KIPS) as part of its user awareness portfolio. Clients such as King Price Insurance, Discovery Bank and SHA Risk Specialists, a division of Santam, have already had huge success with KIPS within their organisations.

AVeS Cyber Security has two certified trainers who are able to provide efficient cyber security awareness training throughout Africa.

“We often see that senior team members don’t easily buy into security awareness programmes because the overall impression is that it is the responsibility of IT departments to secure the overall cyber security of the business. Senior management is often time-constrained, and they often don’t prioritise training programmes. The advantage of KIPS is that it is a single two- to four-hour interactive workshop session.

“KIPS is a strategic business simulation aimed at business decision-makers, system experts, IT staff and line managers that demonstrates the connection between business efficiency and cyber security.

“Game players can now get a real feel of cyber threats and solutions. Top- and mid-level decision-makers are placed as members of IT security teams into a simulated business environment, where they face a series of unexpected cyber threats. Their main goal in a KIPS game, as in the real business world, is to keep the company working and get revenue,” says Isabel Adams, People Enablement Director at AVeS Cyber Security.

“The goal of the game is to illustrate how cyber attacks hurt revenues and how to build a cyber defence strategy by making choices from among the best proactive and reactive controls available.

“Every decision that teams make to the unfolding events changes the way the scenario plays out, and ultimately how much profit the company makes or fails to make. Balancing engineering, business and security priorities against the cost of a realistic cyber attack, the teams analyse data and make strategic decisions based on uncertain information and limited resources,” says Adams.

Important and actionable conclusions after the KIPS game

After participating in a KIPS game, players understand the importance of their role in cyber security and improve future co-operation between different functions.

If a cyber attack occurs in an organisation, it impacts sales, operations and finances. If leaders from different business units or departments participate in a KIPS game, they will see where the company will be most compromised.

Co-operation between IT and every other role player in the business is essential for cyber security success. KIPS creates awareness regarding the emerging challenges and threats that are taking place.

“Humans, whether they are kids or adults, learn easier through games. The KIPS game is a dynamic awareness programme based on 'learning by doing' and can be facilitated either in-person for up to 100 participants or online for up to 1 000 participants.

“While playing the game, the interaction of co-workers is very productive, and they get motivated to take further steps in building a cyber-safe corporate environment,” says Charl Ueckermann, Group CEO of AVeS Cyber International.

One, two, three… play!

In KIPS, each of the competing teams of four to six people are tasked with running a business that consists of some production facilities and computers controlling it.

During the rounds of the game, production facilities generate revenue/public welfare/business results. However, the teams also face cyber attacks potentially impacting the organisation's performance.

To defend their organisation, each team has to take strategic, managerial and technical decisions while taking operational constraints into account and maintaining a high level of revenue.

Each KIPS training module consists of:

• A two- to four-hour interactive gaming session (briefing, gameplay, debriefing and discussion based on a scenario);
• Up to 1 000 participants (four to six participants per team); and
• Simulation run by professional, certified KIPS trainers from AVeS Cyber Security.

And the winner is…

Ueckermann says the feedback on the KIPS training is, overall, very positive.

“The outcome of every KIPS session we've had so far was that overall, cyber security awareness in the company improved. Senior management plays a crucial part in the cyber security of the business and, for example, when a sales team sees how the sales department can’t operate after an attack, they are much more aware of preventing such an attack,” says Ueckermann.

“KIPS influences employee behaviour to detect weaknesses in their own cyber security. Organisations of all sizes now have access to the most advanced and comprehensive threat defence and remediation capabilities in an efficient, fast and cost-effective way,” Ueckermann says.