Offices: notaries, here is how to protect yourself from the main cyberattacks

ADNOV, a company of the ADSN group and technological and digital expert in the notariat and regulated professions, has the mission of facilitating the development and growth of notarial activities. ADNOV's experts support and advise notaries in the fields of computer networks, data protection, but also cybersecurity and customer relations. The webinar devoted to the main cyberattacks within the notariat began with a general observation: on this subject, many professionals are not yet fully aware of its importance and believe they know enough about it. Some believe that as a notary, their position or their data do not interest anyone and do not expose them to any particular risk, while others are convinced that their passwords are sufficiently secure for the good and simple reason that they never had a problem with it. However, these behaviors lead to greater exposure to computer hacking, motivated by the search for computing power from the office's computers, by money or even by the collection of confidential data present within the office. In the notariat, on average, more than one office declares a major IT security incident per week. They are likely to encounter five major types of cyberattack which were detailed during this videoconference by the two experts.

Ransomware: your data held hostage

Also known as malware, this attack takes the form of a malicious program aimed at encrypting data stored on office computers to extort money from them, which can no longer access it. The main impact is the paralysis of computer systems and the potential permanent loss of data such as the customer base, accounting documents, etc. According to the numerous studies made by ADNOV of the various situations treated, these attacks generally come from emails, USB keys or even programs from an unknown source. To protect against this, it is therefore necessary to communicate via more secure means, for example via specific applications allowing all data to be shared securely with customers, but also to verify the origin of all files received. Warnings from anti-virus software installed on workstations must also be seriously taken into account, just as it is important to be aware of one's actions and their impact.

Phishing: stop biting the bait!

Another attack encountered by the notary profession is phishing, which consists of obtaining personal information in order to usurp the identity of the user to carry out malicious actions. Generally, the latter receives an email containing information, links, attachments to download or even alerts that will encourage him to act in this or that way. By clicking on it, the notary then gives the hacker access to the information and resources stored on his computer. To avoid this trap, it is necessary to check the sender of the emails received, be vigilant with regard to unusual ones, check the visual identity, the form and the URL of the redirecting website and always revalidate the information by contacting the person supposed to be the author of the email.

Theft/burglary of hardware and data

Theft or burglary may concern the equipment present in the office or the data directly, even if, when it is the equipment is targeted, it is ultimately the data contained therein and the use that may be made of it. made that represent a high risk that must be anticipated. Among the materials that can be burglarized, removable media (USB keys and hard drives) are also potential targets. In order to avoid a heavy loss of sensitive data, certain good practices should be known: do not use personal equipment, encrypt/encrypt the data so that it is unusable by a hacker, reinforce the physical security of the premises, by putting a alarm or by attaching equipment to the office, for example, do not leave sensitive documents in view of customers, favor 4G connection sharing of your telephone when traveling rather than the public wifi network and, finally, do not not store sensitive documents on removable media.

Social engineering: don't get manipulated

More popular under the name of “president fraud”, this method is similar to that of phishing but targets humans more than hardware. It is a practice of psychological manipulation for the purpose of scams. The pirate collects, upstream, a maximum of information on the notary, by all possible means and not only on the Internet, in order to put him in confidence. It is based on the trust that the professional within the office has in the authorities, in his colleagues, in his habits, in his history, etc. In several offices, this fraud targeted a RIB, by receiving a new IBAN so that the future transfer would be made to an account other than that of the customer. If the action is very often carried out in an emergency, there are some measures to guard against it, in particular by verifying the identity of the interlocutor by a second means, for example by an outgoing call, and by reducing its footprint. digital on the internet, especially on social networks.

Beware of the misuse of passwords

Crucial for secure use of computer networks, setting a password should not be taken lightly. In an office, bad use of passwords generally consists of choosing one that is too weak, and therefore easy to compromise, using the same one for several applications or the same ones for several years and not organizing employee departures. , leaving access and accounts open. "A password is like a toothbrush, it doesn't happen and it changes regularly", imagined Damien Greau.

The latter closed the webinar with a reminder of yet another good practice: in the event of a cyberattack, never remain alone and involve all the players, including ADNOV, two essential actions to ensure the security of the entire the profession.

ADNOV, the partner of notaries facing the cyber threat

ADNOV has been supporting the notarial profession for nearly 40 years in its digital transformation thanks to products and services that facilitate, secure and revolutionize their daily lives. Some of them have been developed specifically to raise awareness and support employees in improving the overall security of notarial offices while optimizing their time. In 2 hours of videoconference, concrete examples adapted to the notarial profession are presented to them. In addition, the Monit'office cyber-alarm system, a solution for monitoring digital activity, makes it possible to prevent and detect cyber threats as early as possible and therefore to reduce the risk of data loss and to maintain the proper functioning of vital activities of the office. Finally, the partnership between ADNOV and La Sécurité Nouvelle (LSN) Assurance strengthens the support of the offices in the event of a claim since it allows the support of the intervention of its experts within the framework of the cyber contracts subscribed by the intermediary of the insurer, an accelerated discovery of the incident and an increased reactivity to deal with it.