b'ACCOUNTING COLUMNA GUIDE TO CYBER SECURITY SAFETY IN REAL ESTATE AND CONSTRUCTION P R O T E C T I N GA G A I N S T C Y B E R S E C U R I T YAT TA C K S I SV I TA L F O RA N Y B U S I N E S ST H AT U S E ST E C H N O L O G Y, A N D I TS N O TA S C O M P L I C AT E D A SY O U M I G H TT H I N KBY IAN MACMILLAN, RISK MANAGEMENT LEADER, MNP DIGITAL SOLUTIONSyber security is often one of the last things that comesuccess within the business are dependent on the safety ofC to mind when thinking about the real estate andtheir employees.construction sector. Trades and technology arent two things that typically coincide, but as businesses evolve andWhen an organization approaches health and safety as a core optimize their processes, adopting and integrating varyingcomponent of their business rather than an afterthought or technologies is becoming more and more necessary. in response to an incident, work is done more safely, and processes are developed with keeping people safe in mind.Every year, one in five small Canadian businesses is the victim of a cyber attack. More than one third of those businessesThe same applies in the cyber security space. Being proactive estimated the cost of the attack at more than $100,000, andand taking the time to understand what aspects of your 20 per cent were unsure what the breach would cost them. business might be vulnerable will help establish a roadmap for where to shore up your defenses.Fear, uncertainty and doubt are often the tactics used to scare organizations into caring about cyber security. And whileHOW TO SECURE YOUR BUSINESS FROMthis can be an effective way to get businesses to act, learning more about what cyber attacks look like and how to safeguardTHE THREAT OF CYBER ATTACKSagainst them allows for a more thoughtful approach. Scammers, hackers and malicious actors arent always pursuing things we would assume are valuable like financial WHY YOU SHOULD CARE ABOUT CYBER SECURITY information or intellectual property.When trying to understand what it is and how it mightCriminals will often take information thats valuable to the impact you, it may be easiest to compare cyber security tooperation of the organization and hold it for ransomit workplace health and safety protocols. might not be valuable to anyone else, but its valuable to you.There have been significant developments in the last 50 yearsImpersonation can be an area of concern, particularly in workplace health and safety that have drastically reducedfor the construction sector. Back in 2017, Edmontons workplace incidents and made organizations safer as a result.MacEwan University paid nearly $12 million to a criminal Health and safety protocols are now commonplace becauseimpersonating a construction contractor after the university their effect is evident and the culture, mission and metrics forfell victim to a phishing scam.In that case, the university failed to verify an email request to Focused on delivering change banking information. The scam was only discovered strategic engineering solutions after the real contractor, Clark Builders, failed to receive three for our Okanagan community. payments, including one for more than $9 million.There are a few simple steps that any organization can SERVICES INCLUDE:implement to help boost the safety and resiliency of their CIVIL ENGINEERING, LAND DEVELOPMENT APPLICATIONcyber security. Here are five fundamental components that MANAGEMENT, CONCEPTUAL PLANS & SERVICING DESIGNSevery organization should consider implementing to help protect against cyber attacks:AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT1.Develop a security culture and raise awarenessA culture where individuals play a part in the protection of the organizations information is crucial. If employees are encouraged to spot and report security concerns and are WWW.ALPINEENGINEERING.CAINFO@ALPINEENGINEERING.CA250-870-6261 rewarded or praised when they do so, theyll be less likely to sweep something under the rug or pass it off as unimportant. 28 SOUTHERN INTERIOR CONSTRUCTION ASSOCIATION'