Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.
Issue link: https://cpapracticeadvisor.epubxp.com/i/460060
February 2015 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com 27 In today's world, there are multiple threats risk ing the securit y of the payroll data you manage. It's impera- tive to take the necessar y steps to avoid falling victim to a cybercrime, or worse – human error. With all the news lately about data breaches, it can be easy to forget that sometimes the frst line of ofense is right in our own b a c k y a r d s a n d c a n u s u a l l y b e d e f e n d e d a g a i n s t w i t h p r o p e r training and careful oversight. Te frst step to making sure your clients' payroll data is protected is to ma ke sure that a l l necessar y per- son nel have been t ra i ned on t he proper use of the pay roll sof ware you r f i r m uses. I f major updates oc c u r, m a ke s u re t h at you of fer refresher training to teach them how to securely and correctly use any new feat u res . G o over compa ny pol ic y for shar ing passwords and ot her con f ident i a l i n for m at ion . A l s o, lo ok f or o p p or t u n it ie s t o integrate and automate data entr y whenever possible. Doi ng so sig- nifcantly reduces the chances of a data entry error. You w il l also want to routinely check you r sof t wa re for updates and/or glitches. Keeping your sof- ware up-to-date ensures that you receive the latest securit y patches and protection. As new viruses and threats are identifed, most compa- nies issue updates to protect against these threats. Not updating to the latest version could leave your sof- ware, and payroll data, vulnerable. In line with this, check for any suspi- cious or unusual behavior within the sofware. Does a particular process suddenly star t returning an error even though the task is performed in the same way? Tis could mean t here's a proble m w it h t he d at a entered or it cou ld be a sig n t hat something's w rong w ith the sof t- ware. Perhaps an update caused an unexpected error or there's a virus. Contact the sof t ware prov ider to make them aware of the issue. If this is a known issue, they can develop and release a patch to f x the glitch. Each piece of ha rdwa re t hat is u sed by you r f i r m or you r st a f f, including BYO devices, should have anti-v ir us sof t ware installed on it t hat is reg u la rly ma i nta i ned a nd used. Schedule routine virus scans a nd ma ke su re t hat a l l a nt i-v i r us sof ware is up-to-date. Make sure employees a re awa re of a ny new v ir uses that your systems may be vulnerable to. Educate them on the i mpor ta nce of ver i f y i ng pay rol l- related emails before they click on a n y l i n k s w i t h i n t h e e m a i l o r d o w n l o a d a t t a c h m e n t s . A l s o , remind them to never share conf- dential information, such as pass- words through email. I f your f ir m uses sof t ware that o f f e r s mob i l e a c c e s s t o p a y r o l l information, ensure that your sof- ware has the same secure access that i s av a i l able t h roug h t he pay rol l prov ider'swebsite. If the sof t ware provider uses a mobile app, test it for security features. Is a mobility code required to access the app? Is access v e r i f ie d b y s e nd i n g a o ne - t i me authorization code to the account holder's phone or email on fle? L a s t l y, you w i l l w a nt to me et regularly with your clients to discuss t he steps a nd mea su res t hey a re taking to ensure their payroll data r e m a i n s s e c u r e . I f t he y h av e n't completely outsourced pay rol l to your frm, or they have staf, such as HR, that regularly accesses payroll data, ma ke sure they have secure processes and policies in place. Audit the procedure for prov iding your f i r m w it h con f ident ia l employee information. Are confdential emails automatically encr y pted? Do you prov ide a secure cl ient por ta l for uploading and downloading docu- ment s? M a ke s u re t he y a re a l so aware of the importance of regular accuracy checks. Securit y threats can come from many diferent sources. Sometimes, it is human error or misinformation t hat ca n lead to defenselessness. Other times, it is out-of-date v irus p r o t e c t i o n o r g l i t c he s t h a t c a n c re at e a l i a bi l it y. W h at e v e r t he cause, diligence and caref ul plan- ning are the best defenses against sec u r it y t h reats aga i nst you r cl i- ents' pay roll data. A Year in the Life of a PAYROLL Accountant is sponsored by SurePayroll and ADP Connect to ADP ® At ADP, we're all about connections — connecting accounting professionals like you to the right resources and opportunities to support your frm's objectives: • Give your clients access to big-business payroll and HR solutions by referring them to ADP • Generate more revenue and simplify payroll processing with our customized platform for accountants • Discover other segments to invest in or retire sooner by selling your client payroll base to ADP When you partner with ADP, you also connect to integrated HR products, retirement and more — everything your clients need to help protect and grow their business. For more information, visit adp.com/accountant or call 1-855-408-3751. The ADP logo and ADP are registered trademarks of ADP, LLC. Copyright © 2014 ADP, LLC. HR. Payroll. Benefts. Protecting Payroll Data by Taija Jenkins, Assistant Editor I t goes without saying that employees' payroll data is sensitive and confdential and, therefore, needs to be protected. But it takes more than simply classifying it as "confdential" to protect it.