{"id":17233,"date":"2019-09-19T08:00:11","date_gmt":"2019-09-19T13:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/taxprocenter.proconnect.intuit.com\/?p=17233"},"modified":"2023-08-22T11:08:48","modified_gmt":"2023-08-22T16:08:48","slug":"cybersecurity-a-critical-opportunity-for-advisory-services","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/accountants.intuit.com\/taxprocenter\/practice-management\/cybersecurity-a-critical-opportunity-for-advisory-services\/","title":{"rendered":"Cybersecurity: A critical opportunity for advisory services"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cybersecurity is something people are talking about a lot \u2013 and with good reason. High-profile data breaches are a small fraction of the security issues faced by businesses of all sizes every day. Ransomware, for example, is expected to reach $11.5 billion in 2019, according to Cybersecurity Ventures<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Tax and accounting professionals still hesitate to play a more prominent role in protecting their clients’ data, as well as their own. However, as tax and accounting professionals<\/a>, we are often a business’ most trusted advisors. For example, in our client meetings, as we help our clients reach their goals, we often discuss far more than just the bottom line. Since data breaches have a direct financial impact on a company, data security discussions may become more common. Clients are increasingly interested in not only managing their company\u2019s assets, but protecting them as well.<\/p>\n

Taking advantage of the opportunities in cybersecurity is vital for modern tax and accounting firms. A minimum requirement is to have enough expertise to avoid becoming a liability to your clients. Ensuring your firm is secure and implementing the best digital security practices is a vital first step. Firms that offer cybersecurity risk assessment as an advisory service<\/a> increase their value to existing clients, as well as attract new clients.<\/p>\n

This opportunity presents some challenges, especially to smaller firms that may not have the expertise on hand, and may need to outsource or partner with other companies. If you decide to collaborate with a cybersecurity company, be sure you understand how to choose a cybersecurity partner.<\/a> If such collaboration isn\u2019t feasible for your firm, you can still advise clients on the best data security practices. According to Keeper\u2019s 2018 State of SMB Cybersecurity report<\/a>, only 28 percent of companies consider themselves adequately prepared to mitigate vulnerabilities or a breach\u2019s ramifications.<\/p>\n

Protecting Your Firm and Client Data<\/b><\/p>\n

The first and most important step we can take is to ensure we are not the source of a breach. Since we have valuable financial data, firms are discernible targets for thieves. Your firm needs to follow robust cybersecurity best practices to reduce the risk. These include the following:<\/p>\n