Police Warn Valley Businesses Are Vulnerable To Cyber Attack

FRESNO (KMJ) — Fresno Police Department has warned businesses in the Central Valley to prepare for future cyber attacks.

The advice came ahead of the 2018 Cybersecurity Summit, held in Downtown Fresno on Wednesday. The event was organized by Fresno PD and hosted by Bitwise Industries.

“A $20,000 loss to a small construction company could cause them to miss payroll that week,” said Sergeant Brian Rogers. “So cyber-security is just as important, and should be a key monetary investment – even in a small business.

“In these times it is too easy to attack and you have to put up the safeguards.”

The free gathering also included the United States Secret Service, the FBI, and other security experts, to help Central Valley organizations ready themselves for the worst.

Sergeant Rogers said local firms should appoint a cybersecurity expert from within to oversee and anticipate potential problems, train them, and have them work with software vendors to plug holes before they become a major problem.

“And to closely guard your email. Email is the largest area of attack where most of our money is being lost, through email spoofing.”

NewsTalk 580, 105.9 KMJ is a sponsor of the Cybersecurity Summit. You can view the 2018 Cybersecurity summit clicking here.

Hear the report from KMJ’s Dominic McAndrew as it aired: