Cybersecurity

Nonprofits thrive on trust — from donors, clients, and the communities they serve. Yet in North Carolina, more than 2,200 organizations reported data breaches in 2024 alone, impacting 6.6 million residents (NC DOJ). Nonprofits were not spared, and nationally, 6 in 10 have been targeted by cyberattacks in the past two years. This workshop breaks cybersecurity down into plain language and practical action. You’ll learn how to protect sensitive information, meet insurance requirements, and build the kind of digital trust that keeps your mission safe and your donors confident.

One of the biggest challenges nonprofits face with regards to cyber security is figuring out how to get started. In this webinar, we'll cover free & low cost, high-impact cyber security activities your organization can undertake right now to significantly improve security and resilience against attacks. RipRap Security will bring in real-world stories of nonprofits and other organizations getting hacked and what lessons we can learn about improving security.

Nonprofit IT Staff Training is a free 2021 webinar by the consulting group, Community IT Innovators, which gives tips on how to develop an IT training program specific to your nonprofit’s staff needs, whether that's better on-boarding, improving on-going training efforts, or re-training staff for a major system change. 

The presenters note ways to make this task approachable, such as:

In the digital age, even small nonprofits are not strangers to being the targets of cyberattacks like having passwords hacked, email phishing scams, or ransomware.

"Ransomware" refers to any virus or malware that maliciously encrypts your computer, data, or network to hold it hostage and bring your organization to a standstill until a ransom is paid. During these attacks, your systems display messages prompting users to pay or take other actions that further compromise your organization's security, while promising to allegedly allow you to regain control over your systems or retrieve your data.

Ransomware attacks block access to your IT infrastructure or your constituent/donor data unless you pay the attacker to release your property.

Cybercriminals are becoming evermore sophisticated in their attempts to infect your device or con you out of sensitive information about your organization. Login credentials to your online accounts that host financial information or data about the constituents your nonprofit serves are all valuable commodities to obtain and exploit, particularly by getting one of your staff to reveal a key piece of information when they respond to a malicious email.

Adapted with permission from Your All-In-One Guide to Improving Your Security Posture, Medicus IT (formerly MDcentric Technologies).

Phishing continues to be one of the most significant cyber-security threats facing Internet users. Hackers are increasing their attacks and exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic. Join presenters from MDCentric to raise your awareness and avoid these traps by reviewing several key techniques, concepts, and historical context used by attackers.

Watch now!