What Is a Security Champion?
A security champion is an employee, outside the dedicated security team, who helps promote good security practices within their own department or business unit. Security champions act as a visible, approachable point of contact who can answer questions, model good behavior, and help reinforce training in everyday work.
Unlike a formal security role, a security champion does not need deep technical expertise. Their value comes from familiarity and trust: colleagues are often more comfortable asking a peer "is this email suspicious?" than escalating directly to a security team they rarely interact with.
Organizations often appoint security champions across departments such as finance, HR, sales, and operations, since each area faces different risks and would benefit from someone who understands both the department's daily work and basic security principles. Champions can highlight relevant scams, encourage colleagues to complete training, and surface concerns the central security team might otherwise miss.
The role works best when it stays practical rather than becoming a policing function. A security champion's purpose is to keep good practice visible and approachable, not to monitor or report on colleagues, which helps maintain trust and openness across the team.