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The Hilltop Blog

Security precautions for small business online banking

Tom Wanat - Wednesday, October 14, 2009
A recent article in The Washington Post got a lot of attention when the author, who has been studying a crime wave specifically targeted at small businesses doing online banking, concluded the only way to be safe is not to use Windows.

The article, "Avoid Windows Malware: Bank on a Live CD" goes on to say, "The simplest, most cost-effective answer I know of? Don't use Microsoft Windows when accessing your bank account online."

"I do not offer this recommendation lightly (and at the end of this column you'll find a link to another column wherein I explain an easy-to-use alternative). But I have interviewed dozens of victim companies that lost anywhere from $10,000 to $500,000 dollars because of a single malware infection. I have heard stories worthy of a screenplay about the myriad ways cyber crooks are evading nearly every security obstacle the banks put in their way."

Hilltop believes the overall concerns mentioned and patterns analyzed are worth knowing by anyone doing online banking as the risks are real. But we also believe in a more holistic approach to securing an office network that includes proper firewall configuration, patch management, and malware scanning. A compromised PC will do harm beyond any impact to online banking -- although we also recognize money talks loudest.

Our bottom line is that Web-based encryption and secure logins alone are not enough to ensure security. Hilltop works with our clients to ensure securing every machine on every network. 
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