Data Security in a Dangerous Cyberworld

Think before you click. One of the most important things that you can do to protect your firm’s data is to educate all staff members about recognizing phishing emails.  Data thieves regularly send emails posing as vendors, clients, or potential clients in an attempt to trick users into clicking on links or opening attachments.

These links and attachments can allow the data thief to steal confidential client information or to control the computer.  In addition, phishing emails can lead to a ransomware attack, where the user’s data is encrypted and held hostage in an attempt to obtain a ransom from the user.

More and more tax practitioners are being targeted by phishing emails, since the client data kept by such firms is very useful to identity thieves.

The best and most important defense against such attacks is to make sure that all staff and employees know to think before they click or open an attachment. When in doubt, don’t click!

A company’s cyber defenses are only as good as the knowledge that each employee has about the dangers of clicking on links and opening attachments.  Make sure that all of your staff are aware of this, and remind them about it regularly.

In addition, discuss the issue with your clients, and recommend that they regularly remind their own staff to think before they click.