This National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM) is unlike any other, thanks to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The month-long event helps educate and motivate individuals and organizations to take responsibility for their role in protecting cyberspace.

COVID-19 has impacted the security of virtually every industry. Remote working environments, education and health care are major targets for cybercriminals.

US Signal’s Trevor Bidle

Trevor Bidle is vice president of information security and compliance officer at US Signal. He said no one could have predicted the worldwide pandemic a year ago. Moreover, it has ushered in unprecedented technical challenges associated with a newly distributed workforce.

“Compounding this issue, 64,000 IT professionals are expected to have lost their jobs by the end of 2020, while cybercrime has quadrupled — leaving organizations short-staffed yet increasingly targeted by hackers,” he said.

Few Prepared for Remote Working

Raif Mehmet is vice president of EMEA at Bitglass. He said before the start of the year, the thought of a fully remote workforce seemed far-fetched for most organizations.

From a security perspective, the picture is concerning, Mahmet said.

Bitglass’ Raif Memet

“Today, across many organizations, corporate culture has changed dramatically,” he said. “Many people now access, share and store data in a variety of ways, using diverse services and devices. For this reason, it is now more important than ever for organizations to prioritize security and be cyber aware.”

Chet Wisniewski is principal research scientist at Sophos. He said despite this being the 17th NCSAM, most people still don’t have the security basics fully sorted out.

Sophos’ Chet Wisniewski

It’s important to continue sharing advice, he said. This month is a good reminder to change your digital lifestyles for the better long term.

Even if you already take security measures seriously, now is a great opportunity to share that knowledge with others.

Scroll through our gallery below for 10 tips for staying cyber-safe through COVID-19.