Two steps to make your business more cyber secure? Too easy!

Keeping your business secure online can feel overwhelming – especially if your expertise isn’t in tech. The good news is that implementing just two easy steps can go a long way towards protecting your business accounts from cyber security risks. The two easy steps are:
- a long, strong and unique password
- an extra layer of security, by turning on two-factor authentication (2FA) in the account settings.
What’s 2FA?
Two-factor authentication (2FA) is a powerful yet simple-to-use security step that helps keep attackers out of your email accounts, bank accounts, financial systems and customers’ data. CERT NZ reports that at least 65% of cyber security incidents reported could have been prevented if 2FA was in place. That’s a lot of protection from a simple step.
How does 2FA work?
When you attempt to log in, 2FA requests a uniquely generated code, which is sent to your phone or provided by an authenticator app. 2FA can also be a biometric input, like a fingerprint, prompted by an authenticator app when logging in. This means even if someone else gets hold of your username and password, you have a second layer of security to keep them out.
How to turn on 2FA
You can set up 2FA on most of your online accounts, like your bank, email and social media accounts – it’s usually found in the account’s security settings. Alternatively, check their website for how to turn it on.
Some banking and accounting platforms will often have 2FA turned on by default but it’s always a good idea to check just in case.
“2FA has reduced the risk of fraud and losing financial data.”
Tom, sole trader
“2FA protects us from so many issues, which is wild because it’s so easy to set up.”
Bobby, brick and mortar store
“We do everything we can to protect our clients’ data, and 2FA helps us to do this.”
Alex, professional office services
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For more tips on increasing your businesses cyber security, read our resources below:
2FA downloadable resource [PDF, 61 KB] – Use two-factor authentication to protect your accounts | CERT NZ