Ambizione Italia for Cybersecurity: training entrepreneurs
Twenty-six percent of Italian companies have had IT security problems according to a Confesercenti-Swg Study on a 5% sample of SMEs with 10-50 employees. And 52% of interviewees said they would enhance defence systems by allocating further resources to secure their data in 2023, for a total investment of almost 470 million euros. Over the next three years, according to the study, cybersecurity spending by companies will total €10 billion.
Programme Ambizione Italia for Cybersecurity, promoted with Microsoft, also addresses entrepreneurs. Is our training suitable? Does it meet the needs of your company?
In the interview conducted by intern Maria Clara Lorusso, with the super vision of Onelia Onorati, entrepreneur Giuseppe Pezzati explains the impact of cybersecurity on his professional life and his training experience with Ambizione Italia for Cybersecurity. Pezzati has been involved in the logistics sector for about 40 years, and in the last 10 he has dedicated himself to highly specialized logistics, activities concerning hospitals. Meanwhile, as a hobby, he is a passionate farmer on his farm, near Palermo, in Sicily, and produces oil, pomegranate, peaches, a new hobby after sports when he was younger.
How did you discover about the cybersecurity course and why did you decide to participate?
I learned about the course at the Chamber of Commerce, with which I have worked both as an entrepreneur and councillor. As an entrepreneur, I pay attention to all proposals concerning training and knowledge. The web has revolutionized our way of thinking. Today, we do everything with computers, so you have to be careful about the information you send out and receive.
As an entrepreneur I thought: how can we defend ourselves? Is there a safety component that can intervene when an entrepreneur gets distracted? These courses are important for this very reason. They provide us with an introduction to learn how to make prudent choices. It was useful for understanding the various differences between hackers/crackers, for example, for understanding how to navigate, but also for paying attention to external opportunities. Entrepreneurs are often superficial, so we trust situations that can even cause corporate damage. It has never happened to me, but it has to colleagues who were not ready.
Do you think you have acquired useful skills for your job?
Yes, it was very useful and interesting. Your young teacher listened and stimulated us, using a comprehensible language. A useful topic, for example, was that passwords: understanding how to manage them, not so much how to change them, but above all how to become familiar with computer systems. Another issue was digital identity theft and how to realize if there are any unusual operation on my bank account. Hackers exploit our ingenuity and lack of knowledge, causing to damage. I have always been careful not to give away too much information.
Have you ever had an IT security issue? If yes, how did you handle the incident?
My company suffered a cyberattack in the past, but we realized the damage done when it was too late. Personally, I turned to the IT manager. The attacks took place on servers located at distant locations. This has now given me the opportunity to pay even greater attention to protecting sensitive information.
How do you manage them now?
I make sure to acquire the knowledge necessary to manage technological devices, improve work and everyday life, develop business, and pay more attention to IT systems.
Thinking about the topics covered in the five-day course, could you suggest any others?
The level of the course was medium-high. It certainly was easier for those who already had a basic understanding of the topic. I would suggest a division into classes based on the level of knowledge, so as to ensure proper learning and personal growth. However, all in all, although complicated topics were addressed during the course, the approach was simple. At the end of the course, I also thought it would be useful to follow it up more specific training, based on our enterprise sectors. Finally, I would suggest providing more solid background information, which can be applicable in any field of work.
