National Cyber Security Month

A broker received an attempted scam recently that shows just how smart and convincing hackers can be. Find out more about it and LMG’s plans for Cyber Security month in this week’s Broker Bulletin.?

This Cyber Security month, LMG’s cyber security team has provided additional content and resources for Brokerversity that members can review and improve their skills in securing their information and avoiding scams.

LMG is also hosting a dedicated online webinar in collaboration with leading cyber experts CyberCX which will help its brokers be the best prepared in the industry against cyber threats.

The aggregator’s experts in information security will shine a light on the emerging tactics of cyber criminals, including their increased adoption of ‘social engineering’’ - where bad actors seek to build relationships and a genuine narrative with business people to build their trust.

With three out of four home loans written by brokers, and the market in the midst of the middle of the traditional spring real estate season, it’s little wonder that scammers are targeting brokers.??

LMG recently detected a phishing email where the criminal posed as a struggling first home buyer, trying to psychologically manipulate the broker into assisting them finance a property.

The email tried to direct the broker to a folder which hosted false payslips and information about a bogus property.

The email appeared highly credible, said LMG’s Chief Information Security Officer Luke Jarmaine. As brokerages become busier - activity has ramped-up as the industry enters the middle of the traditional real estate selling season - it’s so important that everyone in the financial journey remains vigilant.

“We’re seeing attacks becoming a lot more sophisticated,” said Mr Jarmaine, Momentum Media’s 2024 Cyber Information Security Officer of the Year .?

“It’s common nowadays for attackers to impersonate customers or other people in the financial transaction, building trust with brokers. They encourage them to break security practices, offering up their own or their clients’ data.”

The October 29 webinar, hosted by Laura Bennett, LMG’s Security Consultant, Cyber Education, Awareness & Training, and Leah Pinto from CyberCX, will focus on the cyber threat landscape, and how organisations are increasingly being intelligence-led in their cyber security practices.

Laura is the first cyber security coach to be appointed by an aggregator and Leah is CyberCX’s Cyber Intelligence Lead. Keen watchers of the Ten Network’s Hunted Australia will know Leah as the Cyber Team Lead on the hunt for the show’s fugitives.

As part of Cyber Security Awareness Month, Laura has been invited to talk about online protection with The Artemis Space , an FBA- supported women’s community, on October 16.

Mr Jarmaine said: “We’re continually providing our brokers with the content and education they need to be cyber safe, but we’re ramping it up during national Cyber Security Awareness Month ”.

“At LMG, we have the industry’s first dedicated cyber security coach as part of our broader compliance and safety strategy,” said Mr Jarmaine.

“We’ve also invested in a tech framework that allows our brokers to share data securely, but we’re also committed to help them identify threats which are becoming more pervasive in the financial ecosystem.

“Brokers have significant responsibilities in handling and managing data and we’re committed to supporting them to meet these obligations.”

LMG’s strategy for cyber safety is reflected in several pillars:

• Keeping brokers safe by securing their data, and their client data, through business processes and capabilities;

• Creating a cyber and privacy aware community across LMG, increasing resilience against cyber threats to small business;

• Building partner and customer confidence in the security of LMG platforms with best practice industry certifications across LMG’s residential, commercial and asset finance operations.

LMG has achieved the ISO27001:2022 certification and assessed up to the SOC2 Type 2 standard, demonstrating its commitment to embedding security and privacy controls into platforms and the organisation.

See firsthand how LMG is helping grow outstanding broking businesses.

Events: MyCRM Week , Oct 21 - Oct 24.

Discover why MyCRM is the # 1 broking platform - enabling you to lodge deals faster and provide clients with a simple, seamless onboarding experience.

Case Studies: Stephanie Thomas, Loan Market Ignite .

Just two years into broking after a highly successful career in banking, Stephanie Thomas has already achieved remarkable success celebrating Better Business's Franchise Office of the Year title for Queensland. Read her inspiring story.

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