Finance platforms and cyber attacks: how to protect your business app

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If you’re running a digital business, then you need to worry about security. If the business is focused on software, then this concern should be even more pressing. If that software should happen to deal with money, then security should be the utmost priority.

But how can finance platforms protect themselves against digital threats? Let’s consider a few of the more important points.

Recognise the Main Cybersecurity Threats to Finance Platforms

If your platform is to be truly resilient against cybersecurity threats, then you’ll need to be aware of what the more salient threats are. Difficulty arises from the fact that the threats come in many different forms. These include phishing, ransomware, and denial of service attacks. Each of these requires a very different set of preventative measures.

According to the government’s Cyber Security Breaches Survey, around half of businesses and a third of charities have reported an attack in the last twelve months. The most common form of attack is the phishing attack (which has affected 84% of businesses). Thus, it’s worth focussing attention here – but not such that you leave yourself vulnerable elsewhere.

Implement Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

Multi-factor authentication is the gold standard when it comes to establishing that someone is who they claim to be. It involves using passwords, biometrics, and devices (what you know, what you are, and what you have) to provide additional layers of security. If one layer is breached, the others are still there to keep attackers at bay. Where there are just two layers of authentication (typically a password and a device), this tends to be called ‘Two Factor Authentication’ (or 2FA).

Regular Security Audits and Penetration Testing

You won’t know how resilient your systems are until you test them. You can hire a specialised person or organisation to conduct testing. It may be that they’re able to spot a vulnerability that your in-house team were blind to. Fortunately, there exist many specialist cybersecurity businesses that will provide exactly these services.

Educate Users About Cybersecurity Best Practices

The prevalence of phishing should tell us that the weakest component in any cybersecurity arrangement is the human being. The people who use your software could be conned into giving away information that could compromise their accounts, and ultimately their money. Therefore, it’s a good idea to remind users frequently of the risk. For example, if the user is about to withdraw or send money, you might provide them with a reminder that staff from the bank will never ask for a password, or ask them to send money in person. Simple reminders like this can sometimes give the person the cause to think twice.


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