Government to provide $15 million as cyber criminals shift focus to small business

Australia's small business sector is taking steps to protect against the increasing risk of cyber crime with the federal government set to provide $15 million in funding.

At a Council of Small Business Australia forum in Canberra this week, members heard from the Reserve Bank's cyber security chief Andrew Pade that criminals were shifting their focus to smaller targets.

Just as robbers had switched from banks to service stations and newsagents, Mr Pade said cyber criminals were now targeting smaller operations.

He said the Reserve Bank was recording some kind of attack every four seconds and 70 per cent of all incoming email was malicious.

"If we're seeing that, you're going to be seeing it too," he said.

"While it may be scary, this is a new norm. It's not something that can be solved. It's a bit like driver awareness where constant vigilance is required to maintain your security posture.

"Just like you have your car serviced every year, that's what small businesses need to do with cyber security."

Mr Pade said everyone had to remain vigilant.

"You can't stop it but you can become more resilient, where we can just swat away those particular attacks and it doesn't impact our business," he said. Read more

Michael Gorey - Brisbane Times - 26 May 2017