Prac Playbook Edition 8

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device or biometrics. This means if someone does manage to get their hands on your login details, there's an additional barrier to overcome before they can actually access your accounts. You can find out more about Microsoft MFA here. 3) USE OF AI- GENERATED FAKE VIDEO AND AUDIO WILL INCREASE WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CYBERSECURITY IN 2019 T h i s a r t i c l e a l s o a v a i l a b l e i n o u r b l o g From 2016-2018, nearly half of Australian companies were hit by cybercrime (source). It's no wonder cybersecurity has already proven to be a hot topic in 2019. On the heels of a number of high profile data breaches in 2018 and the introduction of GDPR, cybersecurity is front of mind for many businesses. Here are 4 major trends for the year. 1) PHISHING SCHEMES WILL BECOME EVEN MORE SOPHISTICATED Hackers aren't just after your credit card details anymore, they're focussed on infiltrating large value transactions. The property market is especially alluring as it involves constant highvalue money transfers between several parties. They've become experts at hacking into email accounts and following transactions as they progress so they can strike when the iron is hot. They know when you're ready to transfer the deposit and they send a perfectly timed email from the hacked account with false bank details to redirect funds into their own accounts. There have been several recent highprofile property fraud cases in Australia involving these type of phishing schemes that have resulted in significant financial loss for buyers/sellers and reputational damage for service providers. 2) MFA WILL BECOME STANDARD IN ALL ONLINE TRANSACTIONS Password-only access will soon be a thing of the past. More and more businesses are implementing multifactor authentication (MFA) to safeguard their data, particularly in light of the increased prevalence of phishing. MFA requires additional credentials on top of a username and password to add an extra level of verification before providing access to sensitive systems or data. It may require approval from your We're used to hearing the fears about AI taking over jobs, but of greater concern is how it may be used by cybercriminals against us. There's a new trend toward using artificial intelligence to create fake audio and video messages that are extremely realistic. This type of media can be used to add even more credibility to phishing tactics and help hackers to impersonate trusted people. 4) PEOPLE WILL REMAIN THE BIGGEST THREAT TO CYBERSECURITY The biggest threat to cybersecurity is you, your employees, your partners and your clients. It may only take one absentminded click or keying in the wrong email address and you could be facing a serious data breach. That's why education and awareness are key. All businesses should have cybersecurity training and procedure in place to ensure vigilance and best practice procedures. Your security is only as strong as the weakest link. These are just a few of the hot topics in cybersecurity this year, but the speed of change is substantial in cyberspace. If you want to know more about how you can protect your business, you can check out one of our security-related webinars below. Protecting your firm with VOI How to secure conveyancing transactions Cybercrime in e-conveyancing How to manage risk in conveyancing transactions Real Estate Fraud Prevention E d i t i o n 0 8 | 4
Impersonating the buyer An email scam targeted at hacking the email account of real estate agents resulted in more than $200,000 in losses. Consumer Affairs Victoria received reports after an agent sent through the contract of sale and trust account details to the buyer for payment of the deposit. Hackers intercepted email communication and sent through a second email advising the account details were incorrect and leading buyers to deposit the funds into a false account. In an industry where the conveyancing process is being conducted electronically, the protection of transactions is of great importance. Read the article ARE YOUR EMAILS AT RISK OF CYBER HACKING? T h i s a r t i c l e a l s o a v a i l a b l e i n o u r b l o g These cases attest to the consequences if you don’t take proper precautions when exchanging bank account details. Cybercriminals are not discriminative when it comes to those they attack. Let these cases be reason enough in showcasing the importance of safeguarding property deposit funds and communication from hackers. We’ve heard of cases where hackers have intercepted high-value fund transfers, and we know how much more sophisticated they’re becoming. Their success stories have caused a raise in concern for the real estate industry, who are now a prime target for their interception. This means all parties must be vigilant – lawyers, conveyancer, real estate agents, buyers and sellers. You’re only as strong as the weakest party in the transaction and these things can happen to anyone if you don’t take the time to double check details and use common sense before transferring money. What we know about these hackers is that they’re targeting different parts of the exchange. We’ve outlined two high profile Australian fraud cases below; heed these as a warning of what can happen from the prying eyes of cyber criminals. One case outlines the thief impersonating the seller requesting the agent to deposit in the wrong account, and one is impersonating the agent to request the buyer to deposit in the wrong account. Impersonating the seller What was assumed to be the “updated” account details of Andrew Buckley, a high-profile Gold Coast investor, was in fact a $90,000 success for an email fraudster. The agency had requested that Buckley send an email confirming his account details, but shortly after his initial email, another was sent from fraudsters requesting that the money be sent to another bank account. In a world where you can never be too cautious, the agency’s failure to verify and confirm the updated account details with Buckley resulted in a successful interception. Read the article E d i t i o n 0 8 | 5
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