Corporate watchdog ASIC hit with cyber attack

Summary

Accellion is a software company that offers organisations a system for secure digital file sharing and collaboration, internally and externally. It has very high-profile clients, including:

• The Reserve Bank of New Zealand.
• Allen’s law firm.
• The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

ASIC's online application portal has been attacked, potentially compromising the financial details of about 130 organisations. The Australian Signals Directorate's Australian Cyber Security Centre  recommended that those affected should do the following:

• Audit file transfer appliance accounts.
• Upgrade legacy applications/systems.

Accellion stated that it had upgraded vulnerabilities first identified in 2019.

Robert​ Ishak, a cybersecurity expert, said:

'Corporate Australia has a lot more to do to protect itself. It's like we've been sleeping in the house and leaving our doors unlocked.'

He further noted that:

'In my view, it would be a breach of their directors' duties if directors are not considering cyber risk on a regular basis.'

References

• Jan 2021 ARN, ASIC hit by Accellion FTA hack

• Jan 2021 Financial Review, ASIC says it was hit by cyber attack

• Jan 2021 Bleeping Computer, Australian securities regulator discloses security breach

• Jan 2021 ISEC Global, 4 cyber security trends set to influence remote work in 2021