Cybersecurity in accounting has gained increased attention over the years. According to the latest EY and Institute of International Finance (IIF) bank risk management survey from 115 banks across 45 countries, cybersecurity is named as the top near-term risk, with close to 87% chief risk officers (CROs) saying that it will remain so for the next three years.
Nigel Moden, EY Global and EMEIA Banking and Capital Markets Leader, says, “to maintain their competitive position, banking CROs must prioritize both technology and talent; it’s not one or the other. With cybersecurity topping the charts again, CROs need to cultivate a pipeline of talent to enhance operational resilience; it was important last year, and now it’s critical.”
Cybersecurity, once primarily managed by IT teams, has now become a critical priority for CFOs globally. The financial sector, with its vast amounts of sensitive data and valuable assets, is a prime target for cybercriminals. As finance becomes increasingly integrated with technology, the challenge lies in adopting digital transformation while ensuring robust security.
In this blog, we examine how cybersecurity impacts finance and accounting, especially in small and medium businesses, and how CFOs can balance security investments with costs, build strong internal controls, and enhance team awareness.
Cybersecurity in Accounting in 2025
The Canopy and CPA Practice Advisor survey finds that 99% of respondents consider online security important, with a focus on protecting sensitive client information and mitigating risks. But despite strict security protocols in place, 15% of firms have experienced a breach, highlighting the ongoing challenges in this area.
When a single attack can wipe out an entire quarter’s earnings or shut down a small business, CFOs have a crucial fiduciary responsibility to take the lead on managing cyber risk, not only in finance but across the business.
Executive-level cyber maturity informs M&A decisions, product launches, and market expansion. Moreover, cyber risks are factored into enterprise risk models and crisis simulations, right alongside other forms of business risk.
Cybersecurity in accounting in 2025 and beyond demands a reimagined approach. We must take into consideration that the rapid adoption of technology has not been accompanied by maturity in cybersecurity in many firms. Securing the perimeter is no longer enough. A comprehensive security policy is required to safeguard data, people, infrastructure, and the organization’s bottom line.
Compromised accounting data usually includes:
- Bank account details
- Transaction details/reports
- Credit card information
- Usernames and passwords
- Personal and private data of different stakeholders (employees, customers, etc.)
In addition to the usual suspects, including phishing and malware, the advancement in AI has resulted in extremely sophisticated cyberattacks using cloned voices, deepfake videos, and tailored emails, making it very hard for users to detect anything unusual.
For businesses and SMBs handling sensitive customer data alike, the mere risk of such fraud is extreme. More importantly, a company’s reputation can also face immense backlash, something as bad as financial loss in industries where credibility and trust are of paramount importance.
Here are a few things to keep in mind while risks evolve, and businesses need to enhance cybersecurity in accounting to share data confidently, transact, and grow.
1. Invest in and Build Secure Financial Systems
Finance and accounting leaders should ensure that all accounting platforms and ERPs have robust built-in security features, such as encryption, multi-factor authentication (MFA), and role-based access controls.
This is especially important for cloud-based solutions, where inadequately secured cloud ingress ports and API vulnerabilities can lead to cyberattacks and data breaches. Finance teams rely on cloud-based tools for accounting, reporting, payments, and compliance, and cloud service providers need to ensure robust cybersecurity.
Compliance and regulatory requirements pose another challenge, especially if you handle sensitive customer data. GLBA, DORA (EU), SOX, PCI DSS, and GDPR require continuous monitoring and reporting, and businesses that require compliance will need to invest in tools that enable this.
Recommended-
- Prioritize cloud providers that offer customer-managed encryption keys, giving you full control over the security of sensitive financial data. Comprehensive audit trails should log every access and transaction, helping maintain compliance with regulations.
- SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) and EUBA tools enable continuous monitoring. Real-time threat detection powered by AI and machine learning helps spot anomalies in financial workflows like sudden large data exports or off-hours access.
- Data residency is equally important—ensure your provider supports storage within compliant jurisdictions and keeps financial data isolated in multi-tenant environments.
- Lastly, strong disaster recovery plans and high-availability SLAs are essential. Automated, encrypted backups with geographically dispersed data centers ensure that finance teams recover mission-critical data quickly in case of ransomware, outage, or system failure.
- Regular penetration testing, vulnerability assessments, and compliance and risk assessment audits are extremely important.
2. Strong Identity and Access Management
The best Identity and Access Management technology ensures that your digital processes are secured by an additional layer of security, effectively managing and controlling access to information and resources within the organization.
In the finance and accounts teams, accountants and bookkeepers have access to a goldmine of critical financial data. The same applies to vendors, contractors, and other stakeholders who have access to systems and networks within a business.
It is important to follow role-based access and management of user accounts, where permissions and segment privileges are carefully monitored to prevent unnecessary exposure of sensitive data.
Recommended:
- Enforce Least Privilege Access – Grant users the minimum level of access they need to perform their job—nothing more. Regularly review and adjust permissions as roles evolve.
- Use Role-Based Access Control (RBAC)-Assign access based on job functions rather than individuals to simplify user provisioning and reduce human error.
- Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)-Require MFA for all users, especially for admin accounts and systems handling financial data. It’s a simple but powerful defense.
- Centralized Identity Management- Use a unified IAM platform to manage all user access across on-premises and cloud environments for better visibility and control.
- Regular Access Reviews and Certification -Periodically audit who has access to what, and confirm whether it’s still needed. Inactive accounts or over-permissioned users are major risks.
- Automate User Provisioning and Deprovisioning – Automate onboarding and offboarding processes to ensure timely and accurate modification to access when employees join, change roles, or leave.
- Monitor and Log Access Activity – Continuously track login attempts, privilege escalations, and data access patterns. Use real-time alerts for suspicious activity.
- Use Strong Password Policies – Enforce complex password requirements, expiration timelines, and prevent password reuse. Consider password-less authentication for higher security.
- Segment and Isolate Sensitive Systems – Keep high-value systems (like financial applications) in isolated environments with tightly controlled access.
- Implement Just-In-Time (JIT) Access – Allow elevated privileges only when needed, and revoke them automatically after a defined period to reduce standing access.
3. Fool-Proof Encryption and Data Protection
Strong encryption standards are a must for fool-proof cybersecurity in accounting. They protect the integrity and confidentiality of sensitive financial information.
Recommended:
- Implement AES-256 (Advanced Encryption Standard) for data at rest.
- Use TLS 1.2 or higher for data in transit to ensure secure communication channels.
- Evaluate post-quantum cryptography (PQC) standards
- Ensure all financial data is encrypted on storage systems, including databases, file servers, and backups.
- Secure data in transit between users, applications, and third-party services using SSL/TLS protocols.
- Use Key Management Services (KMS) or Hardware Security Modules (HSMs) to protect keys.
- Only authorized users and systems should be able to access or decrypt data.
- Ensure regular audits. Regular security audits help organizations uncover and fix vulnerabilities in their cybersecurity systems before attackers can exploit them. These audits assess the strength of access controls, encryption methods, network protections, and the effectiveness of employee training on security practices.
4. Train your team
Training the team and building awareness about cybersecurity in accounting is very important. They are the most vulnerable link when you have all the systems and processes in place. So, finance leaders need to stay invested in a structured approach to help build team awareness, accountability, and compliance.
Recommended:
- Provide role-specific training with a focus on threats unique to F&A, like phishing scams, invoice fraud, vendor impersonation, business email compromise (BEC), etc.
- Share real-world case studies
- Regularly share new tools, updates, or known threats
- Run simulations to test employee responses and share results privately
- Establish and socialize cyber hygiene protocols, like ensuring strong passwords and secure data handling
- Instill and reward ‘report early’ culture
- Regular quizzes and training programs to ensure employee engagement
- Make F&A cybersecurity training mandatory for new hires
- Explain compliance mandates (SOX, GLBA, GDPR, etc.) and their role in upholding them
- Spread the message -cybersecurity is a business priority—not just a technical one
5. Consider Outsourcing for Cybersecurity in Accounting
According to a latest report by Microsoft in partnership with Bredin, 1 in 3 SMBs have experienced a cyberattack, costing more than $250,000 on average and up to $7,000,000 in damages.
But the good part is that 94% consider cybersecurity critical to their business, and 80% intend to increase their cybersecurity spending, with data protection as the top area of spend. Due to limited resources and in-house expertise within SMBs, 70% choose to rely on external security consultants.
This is where outsourcing can be a powerful enabler to SMBs.
Outsourcing plays a critical role in strengthening cybersecurity in accounting by bringing in expertise, systems, and practices that many in-house teams may lack. This can be particularly helpful to small and medium businesses that find the cost of putting in place the necessary security protocols and underlying infrastructure prohibitively expensive.
We provide customized services with round-the-clock security monitoring, allowing for faster detection and response to potential threats, critical in high-risk accounting functions like AP, AR, and payroll.
Outsourcing service providers in the finance and accounting industry need to comply with strict industry regulations like SOC 2, GDPR, and SOX. Built-in compliance ensures audit readiness and alignment with frameworks like PCI DSS, GLBA, or ISO 27001.
Outsourcing your accounting doesn’t just bring efficiency—it also adds a layer of cybersecurity maturity that helps protect your business from costly breaches, ensures compliance, and builds trust with stakeholders.
Conclusion
As guardians of a company’s most sensitive financial data, CFOs play a critical role enhancing cybersecurity in accounting and other finance functions. By staying alert, following best practices, and working closely with IT, they can prevent costly breaches and protect the trust of customers, partners, and investors. In today’s digital world, secure finance is smart finance.
