New Report From Eftsure Finds Finance Teams Are Vulnerable to Cybercrime, Offers Strategies for CFOs

Original research from developers of leading payment protection software finds majority of 500-plus finance professionals concerned about undetected fraud and escalating cybercrime threats.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA / ACCESSWIRE / November 6, 2023 / A new survey of more than 500 senior finance professionals reveals deep concerns about rising cybercrime, the targeting of finance teams and the danger of undetected fraud. The findings come in "Cybersecurity Guide for CFOs 2023," a new report from Eftsure, developers of a payment protection solution for electronic funds transfers.

Eftsure, based in Australia, is the creator of end-to-end B2B payment protection software that provides security and automation for accounts payable and receivable, mitigating the risk of payment error, fraud, and cybercrime. Its solution safeguards over $18 billion in payments every month.

Eftsure's "The State of Cyber Fraud Defence" examines the surging threat of cybercrime through the perceptions of more than 500 finance professionals, with the goal of providing an essential tool to aid organizations in deterring cybercriminals.

"The cybersecurity landscape is in constant motion," said Eftsure CEO Mark Chazan. "By sharing the insights we've uncovered, we aim to equip CFOs with the knowledge to identify these threats and foster stronger anti-fraud strategies in their organizations."

Key Report Findings

Eftsure's research found that:

• 90% of finance leaders feel cybercrime is increasing.
• 68% of finance leaders plan to update their anti-fraud controls.
• 60% of finance leaders are concerned about undetected fraud.
• Nearly 20% of small businesses forego all anti-fraud controls.
• 10% of finance leaders experienced a fraud-related loss in the last three years.

The report addresses the evolving landscape of cybercrime, including criminals' methods, objectives and targets. It takes an in-depth look at the financial control processes meant to deter these methods, finding that approval processes are by far the most commonly used control to protect against fraud and scams.

However, it also examines Business Email Compromise (BEC), a cyberattack that can circumvent many approval processes. Other anti-fraud processes provide stronger defenses against BECs, but large numbers of businesses aren't using them. For instance, segregation of duties - in which responsibilities and approval authority are diffused across multiple employees - is only used by 59%, while less than half verbally verify new supplier details before processing payments.

"These sorts of processes can help mitigate the risk of digital fraud tactics like business email compromise (BEC) attacks," says Mark Chazan, Eftsure's Chief Executive Officer. "They aren't the only solutions, but organizations could be exposing themselves to unnecessary risk if anti-fraud controls aren't robust enough."

Protecting Against Cybercrime

"The State of Cyber Fraud Defense" provides strategic insights into addressing organisations' vulnerabilities to digital fraud.

It also reiterates the need for regular cybersecurity and anti-fraud training, such as how to identify elements of a BEC attack: bogus email addresses, malicious links or attachments, legitimate vendors or executive emails, scheduling and timing, and email content. And it emphasizes the need to foster an internal organizational culture of security, in which employees feel confident to ask questions or sound the alarm if something feels off.

Organizations also must optimize their internal processes and anti-fraud controls to prevent cybercrime, including:

• Developing a unified, cyber-crime strategy, driven by the CFO encompassing people, processes, and technology
• Doubling down on security hygiene by implementing multi-factor authentification (MFA) on all accounts, whenever possible, and creating complex passwords that are not shared or duplicated
• Standardizing and incorporating key anti-fraud control procedures, like segregation of duties, ensuring employees don't cut corners, even unintentionally
• Pressure-testing existing controls continuously to ensure they stand up against evolving cyber threats

Eftsure also encourages constant re-evaluation of technology in order to stay ahead of cybercriminals' approaches. The firm notes that Eftsure software works on top of existing systems, allowing organizations to securely pay their vendors by providing automated continuous control of outgoing payments, providing the tools to prevent payment fraud, onboard new vendors, and manage the accuracy of existing vendors' banking and compliance data.

The company offers a real-time, user-friendly alert system to ensure secure online payment operations, helping to streamline and automate many of the anti-fraud procedures that can be risky and time-consuming if performed manually. In the growing field of high-stakes cyber threats, Eftsure continues to provide innovative solutions that empower finance leaders to take ownership of their organization's cybersecurity.

For more information, please visit https://eftsure.com, and to download a copy of "The State of Cyber Fraud Defence," visit https://home.eftsure.com.au/state-of-fraud-report-2023.

About Eftsure

Eftsure is a market leader in payment fraud prevention. Specifically designed for businesses, our end-to-end solution safeguards more than $216B in B2B payments per year. Our mission is to build a safer business community. With a large and continuously growing database of verified supplier details (the only one of its kind), we use multi-factor verification to give businesses greater knowledge and control over onboarding suppliers, receiving invoices, and making payments. In short, we ensure our customers never pay the wrong people.

Contact Information

Niek Dekker
Head of Marketing
niekd@eftsure.com.au
+61 450 617 311

SOURCE: Eftsure