1 min read

CFO Strategies: Grain Business vs. Cybercrime

CFO Strategies: Grain Business vs. Cybercrime

 

Cybercrime is a growth industry; losses for US based companies grew 20 percent this past year due to this nefarious activity.

MacAfee estimated in 2014 that the net losses worldwide from cybercrime were between $375 billion and $575 billion each year. 

Even the conservative estimate is greater than the global value of our corn and wheat crops.

This is a managed, highly sophisticated attack targeting you both personally and professionally.

It’s become commonplace individuals and corporations to be affected by cybercrime, with personal data breaches taking center stage on news reports in 2015.

Ransomware has begun the incursion into the commercial grain industry with victims reiterating a common theme; they hit us at absolutely the worst time.

This may sound like a movie script but it’s happening in our industry.

The grain business has 24 hours to pay or the computer system will be shut down and wiped clean.

Financial Officers and bankers are also reporting new counterfeit wire and ACH requests being stopped by deliberate risk management policies.

 

How will your company mitigate this emerging threat?

1. Get your senior management team together and agree that the threat is real.

2. Find professional help with the assistance of your accountants, software vendors, and bankers.

3. Discuss realistic solutions for your company.

4. Implement the agreed upon solutions immediately.

 

The commercial grain business has a successful history of implementing strong risk management procedures by knowing customers and suppliers intimately.

This new criminal activity is not as easy to mitigate, as we cannot choose not to do business with them.

It’s time for CFO’s to help bring this conversation to the board room and address the challenge candidly.

 

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