Protecting Yourself and Your Business against Cyber Fraud

In the wake of the recent Optus Hacking impacting millions of Australians, data security and protecting yourself and your business against cyber fraud has never been more top of mind.

For business owners, it is vitally important that personal and business information remains secure in the event of any cyber incident – especially when dealing with customers’ confidential information.

In our latest Insights article, we highlight important steps business owners can take to protect themselves against cyber fraud and limit access to sensitive information when dealing online.

Important Action Items for Business Owners

At leadership level, there are several action items that business owners can undertake to ensure that your business, employee and customer data remains safe.

• Ensure you are updating technology and systems used at employee and customer points of contact. In today’s digital-driven business environment, the latest software platforms are designed to mitigate against cyber incidents and adhere to strict data-protection protocols.

• There are laws about what you can do with any personal information you collect from your customers, and it’s important to be aware of the Australian Privacy Principles (www.oaic.gov.au).

• Improving password use/hygiene and implementing multi-factor authentication processes can be a highly effective tactic in ensuring data protections whilst online. Continually refreshing passwords on a regular basis (and encouraging your employees to do so) can be an easy-to-implement way of providing an added layer of security.

• Implementation of two-step factor authentication is recommended as a norm to help strengthen security measures.

• Backing up your business’s data and website will help you recover any information you lose if you experience a cyber-attack.

• Monitor use of computer equipment and systems and remind your employees to be careful about where and how they keep devices. Ensure to immediately remove access from people who don’t work for you anymore.

• Put policies in place to guide staff about acceptable use of systems, software and internet.

• Consider cyber security insurance or engaging an IT professional for advice.

Be Wary of ATO Impersonation

It is important to highlight that cyber fraud and scams can often take the form of impersonating the Australian Tax Office (ATO). It is essential to remain vigilant when dealing with unsolicited calls or emails from the ATO and to be wary of any suspicious requests.

Ordinarily, when dealing with the ATO, you should only need to verify your identity when you contact the Australian Tax Office, and not when the ATO has first contacted you.

If you are unsure if any correspondence from the ATO is genuine, it is important to inform your tax agent, who can make contact on your behalf to verify its authenticity.

Educating Your Employees

Educating your employees on safe data protection practices is a further important step business owners can take to ensure safety against cyber fraud.

Training employees to recognise scams such as phishing and spoofed forms/links is critical in ensuring your business remains secure against online attacks. Additionally, a cyber security policy will help staff to understand their responsibilities and what it acceptable when using or sharing data, computers, emails and internet sites.

Help for Small Business

Australian small businesses can access individual support to grow their digital capabilities through Australian Small Business Advisory Services (ASBAS).

The Digital Solutions program offers small businesses low-cost, high-quality advice on a range of digital solutions including online security. The program is $44 for 7 hours of support and your first interaction with the service is free.

For more information on the program, please visit: https://business.gov.au/expertise-and-advice/digital-solutions-australian-small-business-advisory-services.

For More Information

For more information on strategies to implement against online fraud, please contact the Archer Gowland Redshaw office on (07) 3002 2699 | info@agredshaw.com.au.

Disclaimer

The information contained in this article is of a general nature and does not take into account personal circumstances. Before making any decisions based on the factual information contained in this document, please consult with your financial adviser.