ISSD tightens cybersecurity training communications after completion rate drops to 83%

Timothy Renick, Hamilton County chief information security officer, told the ISSD Board that completion rates for mandatory KnowBe4 cybersecurity training declined from 91% in April to 83% in December. Renick said the trend prompted a two‑phase approach to improve completion, including targeted additional training for employees who need help.

County staff recommended changing the communication strategy to place the training directive and memorandum language directly in the email body instead of an attachment to increase visibility. Director of Administration Mike Hubbs emphasized that the memorandum states noncompliant employees risk revocation of system access; Councilor Amy Massillamany supported copying the memorandum language verbatim into the email body to reinforce the mandatory nature of the training.

Renick also outlined broader cybersecurity initiatives: planned incident response tabletop exercises, updates to an interlocal agreement for the public safety fiber ring, a 'good neighbor' document to encourage information sharing during cyber incidents, a vendor cybersecurity questionnaire, and the introduction of a new email filtering product that integrates with Workday and OKTA and is intended to improve filtering beyond Microsoft’s default.

Renick noted continued monitoring of AI‑related cybersecurity risks and the provision of training and resources for staff; Mertens said attendance for AI trainings has been strong and encouraged use of CoPilot Chat provided at no cost to the county.

The board directed staff to revise the training communications and continue cybersecurity preparedness work. The minutes record no formal disciplinary actions taken at the meeting; the memorandum and possible enforcement were discussed as policy implementation steps.