With the number of cyberattacks increasing every year, Australia is in need of a simple national approach to reporting cyberattacks that every cybercrime victim can use. 

FooForce CEO Frances Russell states that the country should have a simple and easily accessible cybercrime reporting system as most victims do not know who to turn to in the event of a cyber attack.  

“The missing piece of the law-enforcement puzzle is an emergency number to report cybercrime that is the same no matter where you are in Australia, something similar to 000,” she said. 

“The cybercrime reporting system should be so simple that anyone can report a cyberattack. Cybercrime victims shouldn’t need specialist knowledge or be a technical expert.”

The CEO of the leading Australian Managed Service and Security Provider stresses that a national approach to combating cybercrime is essential as many small businesses and individuals aren’t aware of the ACSC and so are unable to file a report.

Last year, cyber security threats were being reported to the Australian Cyber Security Centre every eight minutes. The latest Annual Cyber Threat Report also found that cybercrime had increased to 13 per cent from the year before and was costing Australia $33 billion a year in losses. 

FooForce’s CEO believes that the ACSC’s figures are on the low side of what is really happening in Australia’s cyberspace. 

SMEs and individuals are particularly vulnerable to cyberattacks as they do not have the resources for dedicated cybersecurity expertise on staff or even a cybersecurity plan in place. As such, they should be provided with a quick and simple way to call for help from specialist cyber police.

CEO Russell said it wouldn’t matter to the victims if the specialist cyber police was a dedicated national force or state-and-territory-based specialist police units. 

“All crime victims should need to care about is that when they call for help that help is available,” she said. 

“We have specialist police for almost every other category of crime. We need specialist cybercrime squads with a simple dedicated number they can be quickly reached on.” 

CEO Russell said it was up to authorities how a specialist cybercrime reporting line would operate in practice and whether it should be part of the existing 000 emergency response service. 

Ms Russell, who has fought off more than a dozen cyberattacks in recent years, said that the experience of 

FooForce’s engineers have found that the rate and ferocity of cyberattacks were increasing, with most aiming for vulnerable small businesses. 

Since these businesses are able to provide jobs and valuable services, CEO Russell provides FooForce’s top five cyber security tips as simple measures to protect data and systems from cyberattacks:

• Have a plan for what to do when a cyberattack happens 
• Test your backup regularly, and make sure it works 
• Train your staff and yourself – training and awareness is the most effective protection from cyberattack 
• Keep your computers up to date with patching and anti-malware software 
• Use the strongest security settings you can including two-factor authentication and long passwords 

It is important that SMEs and individuals are given the resources to protect themselves in cyberspace as they constitute a major part of the Australian economy. 

This article was first published on CommsRoom

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