Mind those emails: Don't fall victim to a cyberattack

Breached emails are a major entry point into advisers' practices for hackers - Advisor Armor's Best in Class Phishing Email Enticements are included and ongoing in our coverage.

It's not always easy to determine the origins of an email. A 2015 McAfee study asked 19,000 participants from 144 countries to identify which of 10 emails were a phishing scam. Only 3% got all the answers right and 80% answered at least one question wrong, opening them up for a potential breach.

The report suggested users never click on links or attachments, be suspicious of messages asking for personal information, check that the sender's email and information match, look for poor grammar and be cautious of urgent calls to action. Mr. Tantleff said advisers and firm employees should be trained to identify questionable emails.

"Your employees are the first line of defense and last line, so being more cautious as to what they open up and click on and what they respond to is critical," he said. "Employees should be empowered to question this type of interaction." MORE