As October and Cyber Security Awareness Month arrive, Virgin Money is spotlighting this year’s crucial theme: ‘Cyber security is everyone’s business’. 

“Unfortunately, Australians are increasingly being targeted by cyber criminals,” explains Virgin Money General Manager of Financial Crime Operations, Ben Hargreaves.

In 2023, over 94,000 cybercrimes were reported to the Australian Cyber Security Centre, a 23 per cent increase from the previous year. Furthermore, cyber criminals are continually developing new attack methods. 

“The bank continually evolves its cyber security practices to meet the ever-changing landscape and encourages its customers to protect themselves online.”

There are simple actions you, your family, friends, and colleagues can take to improve your cyber security: 

1. Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA): Lock the front door to your online presence by always enabling MFA. MFA involves having two or more steps to verify your identity before you can log in to your account. It gives you an extra layer of security and makes it harder for someone else to access your online accounts. Turn on MFA whenever possible – starting with your most important accounts.
2. Install software updates whenever available: Software updates are one of the strongest defences in your security toolkit. Updates are new, improved, or fixed versions of software or apps. Updating your devices and applications can fix software issues, address new security risks, and add new features. Check that automatic updates are on and install updates as soon as possible. The longer you leave it, the more vulnerable you could be to a cyber attack.
3. Use strong and unique passphrases: Make yourself a harder target by using different passphrases for each of your online accounts. Passphrases are the most secure version of passwords. A passphrase is made up of four or more random words, making them harder to guess but easy to remember. Create passphrases that are long, unique and unpredictable. Use a different passphrase for each account so that if one account gets compromised, your other accounts remain safe. A password manager can help you to create and store unique passphrases.
4. Recognise and report phishing: Phishing is a way cyber criminals trick you into giving them personal information. They send you fraudulent emails or text messages, often pretending to be from large organisations you know or trust. They may try to steal your online banking logins, credit card details, or passwords. Phishing can lead to loss of information, money or identity theft. You can report phishing to the Australian Cyber Security Centre.

By taking these simple steps, you can significantly improve your online security and help protect yourself and those around you from cyber threats.

 "We all have a role to play in keeping personal and corporate information safe and secure. Together we can make it harder for cyber criminals to succeed,” adds Hargreaves.

“Remember, don't rush to action and look out for the warning signs of cyber threats. Question everything you see or hear online."

If you see something, say something. Reporting security incidents helps to keep us all safe. If you have been a victim of cybercrime, head to the Australian Cyber Security Centre for more information: https://www.cyber.gov.au/report-and-recover