6th April, 2018
Maintaining your professional integrity doesn’t have to be a painful process. Get ready for MYOB’s security-enhancing 2FA rollout ahead of May.
Data security and digital privacy are concepts that can cause anyone sleepless nights. But few people take more precaution to protect their information online than occasionally changing passwords – or perhaps tacking some tape over their laptop’s in-built camera.
When it comes to your accounting software login, the good news is we’ve got you covered with two-factor authentication (2FA) rollout, which will soon be mandatory for all MYOB partners.
2FA creates an additional hurdle for potential hackers trying to access your MYOB accounts by requiring a one-use code generated by an authorisation app that you can install on mobile or desktop. Chances are you’ve already come across similar systems as implemented by the big banks, Apple, Google and others.
For around 30,000 MYOB users , the rollout has already begun.
For everyone else, you can expect to receive a prompt to “Turn on 2FA” when logging into MYOB Essentials or AccountRight from May .
It’s tempting to think that because you use MYOB software on a small scale, or you have a login as part of a multi-login business account, that your passwords are unlikely to be targeted online, but this is not the case .
In fact, Hackmageddon.com’s January 2018 Cyber Attack Statistics reveals account hijacking is the second most common form of hacking (14.8 percent) behind the use of malware (43.5 percent), and individuals are far more likely to be targeted than any business or government sector (accounting for 40 percent of attack targets).
While the move to 2FA isn’t yet mandatory for individuals, the May rollout will make it mandatory for accountants and bookkeepers in a bid to improve their digital privacy and the privacy of their clients.
Think of 2FA as the best shot in the arm you can ever receive: it’s quick (no waiting rooms), completely painless and the side-effects are limited only to how you choose to implement this change in your workforce .
Want to learn more about 2FA, what it is and how it works? Here’s a general guide on the topic, while accountants and bookkeepers might like to look here.