An accounting firm holds bank details, tax identifiers and payroll for everyone it acts for, which makes a small practice a far more attractive target than its size suggests. Add a season where a week of downtime is not recoverable, and the priorities become obvious: protect the accounts, protect the data, and be able to work through January and April without incident.
What we usually find in Reston
Reston firms acting for corporate clients get asked about security controls in writing, often before an engagement letter. The controls that answer those questions are the same ones that stop the incident, so the paperwork is not wasted effort.
Your email account is the crown jewels
It can reset almost everything else and it is where clients send documents they should probably not send by email. If exactly one account gets multi-factor authentication today, make it that one.
Busy season is a capacity and continuity problem
Everything gets used harder at once, and that is when undersized equipment and untested backups reveal themselves. The work to survive the season happens months before it, not during.
Larger clients bring paperwork about your security
Act for bigger organisations and you will be asked what controls you have, often as a condition of engagement. Answering with evidence rather than assurances is straightforward once the basics are in place.
Shared buildings, shared exposure
Common wiring and shared service mean the building is not a security boundary. The firm's own network and accounts have to do that work.
Questions from Reston businesses
- Do you look after accounting firms in Reston?
- Yes. Reston is inside our service area and this is work we do regularly. Most issues are fixed remotely the same day, and when a visit is the right answer the time is quoted before anyone drives out.
- How quickly can someone get to us in Reston?
- Reston is within the 30 mile radius we work in, so same day is normal rather than exceptional. The phone is answered 24/7 and technicians are available weekdays 8am to 6pm.
- Clients email us documents with personal details. Is that a problem?
- It is common and it is not ideal. A simple portal or secure link that clients will actually use is the practical fix, and picking one they will use matters more than picking the strictest one.
- Is our accounting software backed up?
- We test it, including hosted systems, because hosted rarely means backed up the way people assume.
- Can you help before busy season rather than during it?
- That is the right time to do it. Anything structural should be done well before the season, and during it we stay out of the way unless something breaks.
- What happens if we get hit with ransomware?
- It depends entirely on whether you have a backup the attacker could not reach. That is the single question worth preparing for, and it is answerable in advance.
- Do we need cyber insurance?
- Most firms holding this kind of data should look at it, and insurers will ask what controls you have. The controls usually cost less than the difference in premium.
- Can staff work from home securely?
- Yes. It is mostly the account and the device rather than the location, which is good news because both are manageable.
Talk to someone in Reston
Fifteen minutes on the phone. If we are not the right fit for your business we will say so.
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