Business event showcased how crime doesn't pay

BUSINESS EVENT SHOWCASED HOW CRIME DOESN’T PAY

Businesses from throughout Aberdeen City & Shire found out how to protect themselves from serious organised crime yesterday (Wednesday, September 7^th).

David Cameron from Scottish Business Resilience Centre addresses attendees

Organised by Business Gateway, Police Scotland, and the Scottish Business Resilience Centre, 'Protecting Business from Serious Organised Crime’ covered the background to serious business crime and made local ventures aware of the kind of scams businesses can be susceptible to. 

Andrew Burnett, Operations Director, Business Gateway Aberdeen City & Shire, said: “We’re very grateful to both Police Scotland and the Scottish Business Resilience Centre for partnering with us to help highlight the latest scams and best ways that businesses can protect themselves. The event was a great success, with everyone leaving armed with new information and ways to spot potential attacks.” 

Speakers at the event, which was held in the Elevator Centre for Entrepreneurship, provided business owners with advice on how to tackle fraudulent activity and ‘Ethical Hackers’ highlighted a range of cyber security matters. Social engineering, an extremely targeted type of scam where fraudsters manipulate victims into sharing confidential information, was also discussed. 

Scott Millar, from IT Rockstars, based in Aberdeen, already works with companies to help protect their IT systems from attack. He attended the event to find out how the police were tackling cybercrime. 

He said: “Since the start of the year I’m aware of six businesses that have been hit by ransomware. It is hard to get word out about how important IT security is and often businesses only think about protection after they’ve faced a specific problem. That is why this event was important; it helped get the word out about what preventions can and should be taken.”

While Michal Wachucik, from Abermedia, based in Aberdeen, found the event made him more confident that he already had sufficient procedures in place to protect his business.

He said: “The event focused on easy and inexpensive ways in which businesses can protect themselves, and made me realise that I was already doing a lot of things necessary to safe-guard my business. Listening to all the experts, and speaking to them afterward, highlighted that much is being done to help the local business community combat serious organised crime.”

To find out more about the free events held by Business Gateway, you can follow the local Business Gateway Aberdeen City & Shire Facebook Page, or Twitter Page

Book your place on free events organised by Business Gateway by visiting www.bgateway.com/aberdeen or call 01224 968174.