“Based on advice provided to me by our cyber experts, Australian organisations are currently being targeted by a sophisticated state-based cyber actor,’’ Mr Morrison said from Parliament House on Thursday 18th June 2020.
“This activity is targeting organisations across a range of sectors, including all levels of government, industry, political organisations, education, health, essential service providers and operators of other critical infrastructure.”
What does that mean for Australian Businesses?
Businesses need to be more vigilant than ever due to the recent surge and sophistication and the recent cyber attacks. Unfortunately a cyber attack doesn’t feel real to most businesses - maybe because it is an unseen threat and consequences are complex / not obvious.
So what can we do to protect our businesses against these international cyber attacks? The good news is there are steps that both you and your IT company can do.
GEO Fencing
We’ve already introduced GEO fencing for some of our customers who are being hyper vigilant towards their security. The GEO fencing is a virtual geographic boundary, enabling software to block or trigger a response when international traffic enters or leaves the specified area. In this situation, the area is the individual businesses IT.
Update your Firewall
A firewall is a security-conscious piece of hardware or soft-ware that sits between the Internet and your network with a single-minded task: preventing them from getting to us. All network traffic into and out of the LAN must pass through the firewall, which prevents unauthorised access to the network.
Avoid Public Cloud Web Applications
Any application that is on a public cloud is at risk as it is internationally open. Web applications that businesses commonly use such as Office 365 and Google Drive are definitely targets to cyber attacks. It would be advantageous to extract any sensitive data from these applications and use a server based system that can be protected through cleverly designed security systems.
Secure Passwords
It is definitely the time to re-inforce security around all of your password protected files. How you do this is by having unique passwords at every login and using multi-factor authentication. Microsoft discovered that the second that you implement two-factor protection, you will have a 99% reduction in account breaches. Look into programs like Passly, AuthAnvil and LastPass to assist your business in ramping up keeping your IT secure.
Our Offer
In response to the rising cyber attacks at Accountable IT Group are offering a FREE Dark Web Scan for all prospective clients. This is our way of seeing if your current IT security system is up to scratch and keeping your digital ID safe. If you want to learn more, click here to read our blog; What is the "Dark Web"?
If your identity (in a cyber world this is an email address along with your password) has been leaked on the dark web, then your IT is compromised. If you’re interested in how we can work with your business to keep you safe during these unpresented times.
Don’t do Nothing
As Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said there was “no doubt that malicious cyber activity is increasing in frequency, scale, in sophistication and in its impact”. “This activity harms Australia’s national security and also our economic interests,” she said. “It’s vital that all Australian organisations are alert to this threat and take steps to protect their own networks.”
