Cybersecurity and Printing: The Poster in the Break Room

There's a genuine irony here: one of the most disruptive Windows vulnerabilities of the last decade lived inside the print system itself. But the more useful connection between cybersecurity and printing isn't the vulnerability, it's the print material every security-conscious workplace still relies on to keep people alert.

PrintNightmare: When the Printer Was the Weak Point

In mid-2021, security researchers disclosed CVE-2021-34527, quickly nicknamed PrintNightmare: a flaw in the Windows Print Spooler, present on effectively every Windows machine, that let an attacker run code with full system privileges. It carried a severity score of 8.8 out of 10, and Microsoft rushed out emergency patches within days of disclosure. It's a genuinely useful reminder that even the most mundane background service, the one that quietly manages print jobs, can become a serious security risk if left unpatched.

Where Print Actually Defends Against Attacks

Most cybersecurity awareness work still happens on paper, deliberately. IT teams and security consultants use printed posters in break rooms and near workstations, precisely because they're always visible in a way an email reminder isn't: "spot the phishing email," "never share your password," "lock your screen." Printed materials don't get lost in an inbox, and they work as ambient, repeated reminders rather than a one-off message people read once and forget.

Security Firms Need the Same Print Everyone Else Does

Behind the technical work, IT security consultancies and managed service providers are small businesses like any other, needing business cards, branded stationery, and signage for the security conferences and trade events that make up a good chunk of how the industry actually sells its services.

Where This Shows Up in What We Print

Office awareness posters and signage through our large format & signage range, and business stationery for IT and security consultancies through business stationery & publications.

Frequently asked questions

What was PrintNightmare?

CVE-2021-34527, a 2021 vulnerability in the Windows Print Spooler that allowed attackers to run code with full system privileges, rated 8.8 out of 10 for severity.

Why do offices still use printed security awareness posters?

Printed posters stay visible in a way a single email doesn't, working as a repeated, ambient reminder rather than a message read once and forgotten.

Do you print office signage and security posters?

Yes, through our large format signage range, alongside business stationery for IT and security consultancies.