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Protect Your Business from Cyber Attacks during COVID-19

How to protect your staff and business during the pandemic
The World Health Organisation declared COVID-19 a pandemic March 11, 2020 and as the emergency escalation continues, worldwide businesses, large or small have been looking for ways to protect their staff against the virus.

Work from home arrangements
One way of minimising the spread of the virus is by instructing staff to work remotely, however, these arrangements may have security implications where cybercriminals may take advantage. According to Emergence, they are already seeing COVID-19 scams being transmitted via text messages. See Emergence's LinkedIn for more information. Flexible work arrangements may include cyber risks such as unauthorised access, malware infection, data security and unsecured laptops, Personal Computers, iPads or even mobile devices that staff use. Ensuring remote access to business networks is paramount to an organisation's security to avoid vulnerability and exposure of confidential data.

How to stay safe
Consider proactively implementing the following strategies:
  • Review your business continuity plans and procedures
  • Ensure your systems, as well as, virtual private networks and firewalls, are up to date and have the most recent security patches
  • Implement multi-factor authentication for remote access systems and resources (including cloud services)
  • Ensure your staff and stakeholders are informed and educated in safe cyber security practices, such as identifying socially engineered emails and messages
  • Ensure your data is backed up automatically everyday
  • Increase your cyber security measures in anticipation of the higher demand on remote access technologies by your staff, and test them in advance
  • If you use a remote desktop solution, ensure it is secure
  • Ensure staff working from home have physical security measures in place. Through this, the risk of information being accessed, used, modified or removed from the premises without authorisation is minimised.
  • Ensure your work devices, such as Personal Computers or laptops, iPads or tablets and mobile phones are secure
  • Ensure you are protected against Denial of Service threats.

Cyber Policy Cover
IT infrastructure owned, leased, rented or licensed such as cloud or SaaS solutions by the insured and used in conducting the insured's business is covered under the cyber policy which means if a cyber event originates from a computer or laptop, table or any other device being used by the insured's employees at home, the policy will respond to cover the cyber event for response costs, profit loss and any possible litigation that may arise.

Need more information?

Management Liability insurance is designed to provide protection to both the business and its directors or officers for claims of wrongful acts in the management of the business.

A business insurance pack can provide cover for your business premises and contents, against loss, damage, theft or financial loss from an insured interruption to the business.

Purchase up to six products under one Business Insurance Package. 

The Australian Signals Directorate's Australian Cyber Security Centre has produced some excellent advice to help businesses stay secure from cyber threats while managing remote workforces.

For more details, click here.

ARMA Insurance Brokers are open for inquiries and quotes, you may call us on 02 4932 4444 or email maitland@armainsurance.com.au or click here to get a FREE quote.

Source: enewsletter
Emergence
https://www.emergenceinsurance.com.au/
General Advice Warning: This advice is general and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider whether the advice is appropriate for you and your personal circumstances. Before you make any decision about whether to acquire a certain product, you should obtain and read the relevant product disclosure statement.

All information above has been provided by the author.


Amanda Morris, Arma Insurance Brokers Hunter Valley, ABN 60096916184, AFSL 233750

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