Many 401(k) plan sponsors mistakenly believe that when they delegate responsibilities to a record-keeping service provider, they have no liability for cybersecurity breaches. One recent…
It is no secret that CPAs have faced an increasing level of cyber-security threats, even under normal conditions. Audit Analytics reports in its June 2020…
It was a bellwether year for cyber-crime worldwide in 2019. As a patchwork of new regulations began to emerge in the United States and the…
When Is a Business ‘Shielded’ from Financial Harm?
Impending New York State Law Imposes Stringent Requirements
I recently had a conversation with a prospective client about cybersecurity readiness. The client is a law practice, owned and run by a member of…
In a recent article “Who’s to Blame for Ransomware Attacks—Beyond the Attackers?” (SearchSecurity, July 2019, http://bit.ly/38txRda), Kevin McDonald of Avalka Networks discussed the issue of responsibility…
ICYMI | The Taxation of Cryptocurrency
Virtual Transactions Bring Real-Life Tax Implications
Bitcoin and several rival forms of cryptocurrency experienced record-breaking growth in recent years, leaving many investors and their CPAs grappling with uncertainty and surprise during…
Technology Touchstones for 2020
Increase Security and Monitor Activity
When hackers attack a CPA firm, it can impact the firm's data, but more importantly, it can expose clients' sensitive financial data. A business's ability…
Pulitzer Prize–winning author Herman Wouk wrote, “The will not to believe. It is simple human nature. When the mind cannot grasp or face up to…
The previous installment of this column discussed what to do when a cyberattack inevitably occurs, including how to react if a client's organization (or a…
A call comes in from the helpdesk: A user reports that she has a red screen on her desktop asking for a cryptocurrency payment and…
Bill Burr, the author of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) password standards in 2003 (NIST SP 800-63), conceded in an interview with The…
I particularly enjoyed Mark Nickerson's article on fraud possibilities in your annual technology issue (“Fraud in a World of Advanced Technologies,” June 2019, http://bit.ly/2LJedBZ). I wager…
Cybersecurity: Where Are We, and What More Can Be Done?
Keynote Address
Our mission at the PCAOB calls on us to protect investors and the public interest by overseeing one particular aspect of the financial reporting ecosystem:…
Sometimes the highest and best value that CPAs can provide to their clients and employers is to prevent problems from occurring or to recognize events…
About the Panelists Wesley Bricker, chief accountant at the SEC's Office of the Chief Accountant; Kyle Moffatt, chief accountant at the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance; and Matt Jacques, chief…
Monitoring Risk in Financial Reporting
Regulators Look Closer at Cybersecurity, Sustainability, and Governance
The 18th Annual Financial Reporting Conference, hosted by Baruch College this past May 2, once again brought together regulators, standards setters, preparers, auditors, and users…
ICYMI | Cybersecurity Risks and Controls
Is the AICPA’s SOC for Cybersecurity a Solution?
In Brief As high-profile corporate data breaches continue to occupy headline space, businesses are grappling with how to confront a serious risk that changes on…
In a speech at Baruch College's 18th Annual Financial Reporting Conference, PCAOB member Kathleen Hamm stated: “Technology offers the promise of combining increased efficiencies with…
Cybersecurity and Data Breaches
Learning from CCH’s Mistakes
By this point, every CPA knows that CCH was attacked by malware in early May, causing a mass outage of its platform for several days…
Cybersecurity Risks and Controls
Is the AICPA’s SOC for Cybersecurity a Solution?
In Brief As high-profile corporate data breaches continue to occupy headline space, businesses are grappling with how to confront a serious risk that changes on…
Around the globe, cybercrime cost society over $3 trillion in 2018, and this cost is forecast to rise to $6 trillion by 2021 (“Cybercrime Damages…
Should CPA Firms Be Worried about Data Breach Claims?
Hurdles to Establishing Standing and Demonstrating Economic Viability
Driven by unceasing news reports, CPA firms are growing increasingly concerned that data breaches are increasing in both frequency and severity. With this deluge of…
Where The Money Is
Doing What’s Right for the Profession
Editor's note: This month, we introduce a new column dedicated to the current state of cybersecurity and how cybercrime affects CPAs and auditors. Each installment will…
The panel featured Douglas Bloom, JD, director of the cybersecurity and privacy and financial crimes unit at PricewaterhouseCoopers; Chris Halterman, CPA, executive director of advisory…
The Taxation of Cryptocurrency
Virtual Transactions Bring Real-Life Tax Implications
Bitcoin and several rival forms of cryptocurrency experienced record-breaking growth in recent years, leaving many investors and their CPAs grappling with uncertainty and surprise during…
ICYMI | The Equifax Data Breach
What CPAs and Firms Need to Know Now
In the wake of the Equifax computer breach—in which key personal information of 145 million Americans was stolen—it may be correct to assume that anyone…
New York State recently adopted a “first-in-the-nation” set of cybersecurity compliance requirements that impact any businesses or organizations that report to the Department of Financial…
Embracing Compliance for the Sake of Cybersecurity
Looking Beyond Legal Requirements to Find Best Practices
Although compliance laws exist to protect both employers and employees, they draw possibly the most complaints of any corporate requirement. Compliance is not optional, however,…
Enterprise Technology Risk in a New COSO ERM World
Eight Challenges Facing Management
The release of the revised Committee of Sponsoring Organizations (COSO) Enterprise Risk Management—Integrated Framework could not have come at a better time for technology risk professionals and…
A new series of cyber-related class action claims against at least 15 law firms could have serious implications into how CPA firms, and many of…