On a recent episode of The Technology Lab Podcast, accounting experts and hosts Randy Johnston and Brian Tankersley, CPA, looked extensively at SmartVault, a secure document management and client portal solution tailored for the accounting industry. A summary of their conversation is below. The Need to Securely Share Files “I feel like I’m on the […]
Resource Category: Blogs & Articles
4 Tips for Hiring Temporary Workers During Tax Season
Tax season is just around the corner, and, depending on your workload, you may once again find yourself considering whether you should hire temporary tax preparers to ensure your accounting firm doesn’t get bogged down by a backlog of work. Hiring temporary workers offers numerous benefits to busy CPAs. And thanks to the rise of […]
Two-Factor Authentication: What Accounting Pros Need to Know
As an accounting professional, you handle sensitive financial data and documents on a daily basis. Despite being widely available, many accounting professionals have yet to adopt multi-factor authentication (MFA). MFA, which includes two-factor authentication (2FA), provides an extra layer of security beyond just a password. Why is this important? “It doesn’t matter how good your […]
Knowledge-Based Authentication: What You Need to Know
There are numerous tools you can use to protect your clients’ personal and financial data and safeguard your business against a devastating cyberattack. One of these is KBA, or knowledge-based authentication. Below, we’ll answer some common FAQs about KBA so you can use them to bolster your accounting firm’s cybersecurity plan. What is Knowledge-Based Authentication […]
Why Having a Written Cybersecurity Plan Isn’t Enough
See if this sounds familiar: While she was preparing to participate in a recent SmartVault webinar, Elizabeth Manso, CEO of progressive accounting firm Brigade, reviewed her practice’s cybersecurity measures and found something startling. "Before this webinar, I thought…we were on top of it [cybersecurity]. In preparing for this, I found out we weren’t as organized […]
4 Free or Inexpensive Ways to Protect Yourself Against a Cyberattack
Do you currently have a well-defined, well-thought-out cybersecurity plan in place at your accounting firm? A decade or so ago, protecting yourself against a cyberattack wasn’t a requirement for a healthy, well-functioning accounting and finance practice. Today, however, in the words of SmartVault CISO and former cybersecurity law enforcement officer Luke Kiely, having a cybersecurity […]
4 Harmful Misconceptions About Cybersecurity Held by Accounting Firms
Cybersecurity. It’s hardly a new concept, especially in the profession of accounting, which has long been a favorite target of cybercriminals due to the valuable sensitive personal and financial data accounting and finance professionals manage on a daily basis. And yet, it’s still an area in which many accounting firms are lagging far behind where […]
The Cyber Kill Chain: The 7 Stages of a Ransomware Attack (& Why Accountants Should Care)
For three months, the thieves spent time learning about the business—-casing the joint, in movie parlance. They learned the names of key employees, their backgrounds, and where they lived. They knew who worked in which department and who might present an easy target. They built websites that looked just like the legitimate ones that belonged […]
Eric Green’s Tips for Reconstructing Records and Overcoming Difficult Auditors
Navigating an IRS audit — already a stressful process for many — can quickly become a nightmare when clients’ records are destroyed or they’re assigned an unreasonable auditor. In a recent SmartVault webinar, veteran tax attorney Eric Green shared past audit horror stories and offered tips to handle some worst-case scenarios. Here’s a summary of […]
The Future of Accounting: Four Tips to Add CAS and Meet Modern Client Needs
The accounting profession is undergoing a major transition as client expectations change. “Clients are more knowledgeable, aware, and demanding today,” Bill Carlino, Managing Director of Whitman Transition Advisors LLC, says. “They want the firm they work with to provide as many services as possible.” This includes client advisory services (CAS), something the accounting industry has […]
What Documentation? How I Discovered SmartVault.
I still remember the moment five years ago when I realized that my ‘routine audit’ engagement would no longer be routine. My client just received an Information Document Request from the IRS examiner with a lengthy list of documents they needed to supply. As we were reviewing the list, my client told me about the […]
Are You Meeting Your Clients’ Expectations?
What exactly do your clients expect? We’ve compiled a list of the most common things below. We also encourage you to contact your clients directly; most are willing to share their expectations and how your firm is meeting them or missing the mark. Take the information you learn here, coupled with feedback, and re-evaluate your […]
How Accountants Can Protect Against Growing Cyber Threats
Cyberattacks aimed at stealing data and holding systems hostage are increasing across all industries, and accounting firms and individual practitioners are not immune. Recent surveys indicate many accountants lack basic cybersecurity protections, putting highly sensitive client information at risk and threatening the viability of their practices. On a recent Tax Rep Network Podcast, host Eric […]
How Dawn Brolin Streamlines Client Onboarding at Her Firm
Onboarding new clients is a critical process for accounting firms. An efficient process sets the stage for a smooth relationship and allows you to get client work done quickly. But many firms struggle with having a consistent system. When it comes to onboarding new clients at her firm, Dawn Brolin, CPA, CFE, has a major […]
SmartVault Helps UltraTax CS Users Unlock Higher Levels of Efficiency with New SmartRouting Feature
Read the original article on Newswire. HOUSTON, TEXAS, UNITED STATES, July 11, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ — SmartVault, a leading provider of an integrated, cloud-based document management system (DMS) and client portal platform, is excited to announce SmartRouting, a feature that creates logical, effortless organization between Thomson Reuters® UltraTax CS* tax application and SmartVault. This seamless integration enables users to print and […]
Unleash the Power of SmartVault’s Client Portal for Seamless Collaboration
Our previous blog explored the benefits of SmartVault’s client portal for accounting professionals. Today, we’ll share how you can create seamless collaboration with your clients by using our client portal. 5 Ways SmartVault’s Client Portal Leads to Better Collaboration SmartVault helps over 3 million users collaborate better online, from document sharing to digital signatures. Here’s […]
Enhancing Efficiency and Security with SmartVault’s Client Portal for Accounting Professionals
Accounting professionals know just how important it is to have efficient document management and secure communication with their clients. The reality is that many professionals still rely on manual processes that slow everyone down, make collaboration cumbersome, and expose data and sensitive information to unnecessary risks. That’s where SmartVault’s client portal comes in. 5 […]
5 Cornerstones of a Consistent Client Experience that Delivers Maximum Efficiency
Guest Blog By Dawn Brolin, CPA, CFE Clients are the lifeblood of any accounting practice, of any business for that matter! Ensuring that you have the most efficient and consistent client experience possible will make your firm more productive and profitable now and in the future. For me, locking down my client experience and leveraging […]
Protect Your Data: Complete a Risk Assessment for Your Accounting Firm
What is a risk assessment for accounting firms? Simply put, it’s an appraisal of your practice’s ability to keep itself from falling prey to cybercrime. The risk assessment will help you identify, evaluate, and prioritize areas where your cybersecurity measures are leaving you vulnerable to an attack. Know What Data You Have The first step […]
What is the FTC Safeguards Rule for Accountants?
There is a myriad of good reasons to ensure your accounting firm’s cybersecurity measures are as sophisticated as possible. By protecting your clients’ data, you maintain your reputation, protect their privacy, assuage their concerns about safety, and, of course, uphold the law. While cybersecurity might have been left to individual accountants to deal with at […]