Cybersecurity for accounting teams

Who it is for

Objectives

Sessions and topics

6 sessions × 90 minutes · 9 hours · The final assessment takes place separately from the live sessions.

1. Session 1

   • Why people are targeted — See why attackers target the people who handle money, information and decisions. Learn when to pause and check a request before it causes a loss.
   • Cyber threats and business impact — Understand cyber threats through their business impact: lost money, stolen information and interrupted work. Connect risk to everyday decisions, whatever your organisation’s size.
   • Everyday security habits — Spot the everyday shortcuts that leave information and access exposed. Build practical habits for your screen, files and workspace.

2. Session 2

   • Social engineering — Recognise requests that use fear, authority or helpfulness to rush a decision. Practise checking through a trusted contact, even when the story sounds convincing.
   • Phishing in email and messages — Check the request, sender and destination before opening a link or attachment. Apply the same judgement to email, text messages and WhatsApp.
   • Scam calls and QR-code traps — Recognise phone calls and QR codes that steer you towards a fraudulent request. Learn to verify the caller or destination independently and keep authentication codes private.
   • AI impersonation and deepfakes — A familiar voice or convincing video can still carry a fraudulent request. Practise checks that work even when an AI-generated impersonation has no obvious flaws.

3. Session 3

   • Passwords and accounts — Use distinct passwords and keep work access separate from personal accounts. Recognise requests to share a password and know what to do if it has been exposed.
   • Multi-factor authentication — Understand how an unexpected sign-in approval can become a trap. Learn to question prompts you did not initiate and keep access codes to yourself.
   • Safer email and web browsing — Spot risks in suggested recipients, reply-all messages and misleading web pages. Check where information is going before you send it or continue browsing.
   • Apps, downloads and USB devices — Recognise apps, downloads and USB devices that ask for trust too quickly. Choose approved tools and seek help before trying an improvised workaround.

4. Session 4

   • Malware and ransomware: first steps — Recognise warning signs that malicious software may be affecting your files or device. Learn the first actions that limit the problem while specialist help takes over.
   • Using AI safely at work — Understand what information belongs in an approved AI tool and what must stay protected. Check its output before using it in a document or decision.
   • Sharing information with the right people — Match the information, recipient and sharing method to the business need. Recognise requests that grant wider access or disclose more information than necessary.
   • Recognising and reporting concerns — Know what to report and how to help your organisation respond quickly, including after your own mistake. Share useful facts without spreading the exposure.

5. Session 5

   • Payment fraud and bank account changes — Spot bank account changes hidden inside a legitimate payment request. Check the beneficiary and approval without letting a deadline stand in for evidence.
   • Business email compromise — See how a genuine supplier conversation can be hijacked. Verify new instructions outside the email thread, even when the sender’s address is familiar.

6. Session 6

   • Fake invoices and altered documents — Distinguish an authentic-looking invoice from evidence that a service was ordered and received. Recognise credible documents used to support an unjustified payment request.
   • Safer access to accounting and banking apps — Recognise requests for codes, borrowed sessions and supposed checks inside financial apps. Authorise only a verified transaction using your own approved access.
   • Executive impersonation fraud — Recognise urgent or confidential payment requests made in a leader’s name. Keep the checks and approvals in place, even when the request appears to come from the top.

Delivery format

Instructor

Duration and scheduling

Materials and resources included