I am interviewing Dr. Feliks Kravets, Founder and CEO of CyberSecurityEasy.com LLC. We invited him to speak about social engineering awareness and why it is important.
- What inspired you to start CyberSecurityEasy.com LLC?
Dr. Kravets: The genesis of CyberSecurityEasy.com LLC emerged from observing a pressing need in the digital landscape. The cyber world is evolving rapidly, with artificial intelligence (AI) and social engineering becoming more sophisticated by the day. Yet, there’s a glaring gap in the general public’s understanding and awareness of these issues. Particularly concerning to me was how underprepared we are in recognizing and defending against cyber threats, from phishing emails to more complex AI-generated scams. This disparity in knowledge and the real-world implications of such vulnerabilities, where personal and financial safety are at risk, propelled me to establish the CyberSecurityEasy initiative. Our aim is to bridge this knowledge gap by making social engineering awareness concepts accessible and understandable to all, thereby enhancing the community’s overall cyber resilience.
- Can you explain the main mission of this company?
Dr. Kravets: Our mission is driven by the urgent need to elevate social engineering awareness across various demographics, from young students to seniors. We break down intricate concepts into digestible, actionable knowledge, covering a wide array of topics such as navigating email safely, understanding the risks of SMS messaging, securing phone calls, creating strong passwords, and recognizing the potential risks of being targeted by cloned AI-generated voice and video messages. Our approach is community-centric, offering a suite of services tailored to meet the needs of different groups.
- What types of coaching does CyberSecurityEasy.com LLC offer?
Dr. Kravets: We offer a diverse range of sessions, including coaching on phishing using phone calls, text messages, websites, password safety, and AI-generated scams, and more. For senior sessions, we offer nationwide remote sessions and in-person sessions in the greater Chicago area. We provide support for after-school programs for students and assist cyber insurance companies interested in offering web-based coaching programs for policyholders to improve their knowledge and ability to recognize phishing attacks. In addition to lessons, we develop video clip-based packages customized for each client’s needs, providing real-life examples of phishing attacks.
- If I am your client – can you explain to me what you are trying to achieve?
Dr. Kravets: Our goal is to make our participants feel more knowledgeable and encourage them to pay more attention to red flags and details when receiving any type of communication, even if this communication is from someone they know. Just that awareness can prevent potential scams. Impersonation is a big deal, especially when we’re talking about links to banking websites or businesses being attacked, which can have severe consequences. Another important aspect is passwords, which we often neglect to change, and many people use the same email and password for banking as well as for all social media platforms. Regularly scanning computers for viruses is also crucial. These topics are just a few of the areas we cover, and focusing on just these few can potentially improve our cyber safety significantly. There’s no way to be 100% safe, but by stopping to think and verify, we can make everything less risky.
- How do cyber insurance companies benefit from partnering with CyberSecurityEasy.com LLC?
Dr. Kravets: Cyber insurance companies greatly benefit from our collaboration by enhancing their clients’ ability to better recognize and identify threats, especially through social engineering attacks. Our customized video-based coaching programs help both new and existing policyholders better understand potential risks and adopt safer practices by learning from real-life situations. This encourages startups and business owners to be more cautious and think twice about verification before making any decisions, clicking on links, or responding to emails, text messages, or phone calls. The idea is to continually consider the zero-trust approach, which could lead to cross-verification and rechecking before making any steps.
- What advantages do middle schools gain by implementing cyber safety programs for their students?
Dr. Kravets: Middle schools that incorporate our cyber safety programs equip their students with critical life skills for navigating the digital world safely. As a parent and educator teaching for over 20 years, I truly believe that social engineering awareness must be included in middle school programs nationwide. Kids are getting used to computers from a very early age, and as parents, we physically can’t control what they do 24/7. With all the great technologies with parental controls, kids are still kids, and we must explain to them what may happen and what can cause crises from the time they start using technology. By starting this education early, we lay a foundation for responsible online behavior, helping to protect students from cyberbullying, sextortion, and other digital threats.
- How about seniors and elderly groups?
Dr. Kravets: Seniors represent one of the most vulnerable segments of our society in the digital realm. Cybercriminals often target older adults, exploiting their potential lack of familiarity with technology and digital safety practices. Americans over 50 neared $3 billion in 2023, a 62% increase from the previous year. They are nearly twice as likely to fall victim to phishing attacks compared to younger users, with the median loss in fraud cases reaching $1,092 for seniors, significantly higher than the $400 for the younger demographic. Our coaching is designed to address these challenges by providing seniors with examples and explanations of how phishing works and how they should take all possible steps to verify any information they receive via emails, phone calls, text messages, and other sources before making any decisions or even responding.
Senior facilities that utilize our services can significantly enhance their residents’ digital safety and confidence. Our group coaching sessions, whether in-person or remote, are tailored to address the unique challenges seniors face online. By providing them with the knowledge to recognize scams, phishing attempts, and fraudulent messages, we empower seniors to protect their personal and financial information effectively. Additionally, our library of short video clips offers continuous learning opportunities, making cyber safety education both accessible and practical for senior residents, thereby improving their overall quality of life in today’s digital age.
- It seems like you’re working with diverse population groups who all need this. Is there anything you’d like to add, Dr. Kravets?
Dr. Kravets: Thank you for this question. We’re eager to present this topic at conferences at any level to enhance societal awareness about social engineering and cyber safety. Despite creating the finest programs, human errors remain a significant factor in most data breaches, accounting for about 97%. We’re keen on collaborating with various organizations to amalgamate our efforts in disseminating this crucial knowledge, thereby aiding both businesses and individuals.
- You mentioned the Zero-Trust approach; can you explain what it is?
Dr. Kravets: Absolutely. The zero-trust approach is a security concept centered on the belief that organizations should not automatically trust anything inside or outside their parameters. Instead, they must verify anything before granting access. This method helps minimize potential security breaches by limiting access to various systems and applying strict identity verification. This is also applicable to each one of us to be on the safe side when we are responding, clicking, downloading, or sharing personal or financial details.
- How can people find you?
Dr. Kravets: Please visit our website at cybersecurityeasy.com and contact us at info@cybersecurityeasy.com. Our YouTube channel, https://www.youtube.com/@cybersecurityeasydotcom, contains links to all other social media platforms and two other YouTube channels with sample coaching video clips for seniors and businesses. We look forward to working with all parties interested in cooperating and staying safe.
htps://www.youtube.com/@cybersecurityeasyforseniors
htps://www.youtube.com/@cybersecurityeasyforbusiness