CLOUD BASED SOFTWARE

Transcription

1 CLOUD BASED SOFTWARE Keiran Sullivan Director RSM Bird Cameron 13 Dandaragan Street MOORA WA 6510 Ph (08)

2 Disclaimer This presentation is based on the presenter s understanding of the law as of 17 June The presenter expects the law to be continually amended and the Commissioner of Taxation s interpretation of certain issues to evolve. The information contained within this presentation is factual and is not financial product advice as defined by the Corporations Act (2001), therefore it does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situations or needs. The presenter is not licenced to provide financial product advice and taxation is only one of the matters you need to consider when making a decision about a financial product. You should consider seeking advices from an Australian Financial Services Licensee before making any decision in relation to a financial product. Connected for Success

3 What is cloud computing? Advantages of cloud computing Presentation Subject Header WHAT WILL BE COVERED Security considerations and other issues Cloud computing accounting programs available Which cloud accounting program to choose? Useful Apps for Australian agriculture Useful Apps for Small Business Standard Business Reporting ATO Business Benchmarking

4 WHAT IS CLOUD COMPUTING? Presentation Subject Header

5 WHAT IS CLOUD COMPUTING? Presentation Subject Header

6 WHAT IS CLOUD COMPUTING? Cloud computing accounting software is software that is hosted on remote servers. Data is sent into the cloud where it is processed and returned to the user. Cloud computing software frees the business from having to install and maintain software on individual desktop computers. Most application providers charge based on usage compared to site license fees with tradition accounting software. Cloud computer accounting software may also be referred to as online accounting software or web-based accounting software.

7 ADVANTAGES OF CLOUD COMPUTING Quick implementation process Lower upfront costs Little or no hardware or maintenance costs Anytime access from anywhere with an internet connection Reduced support costs Reallocation of resources Easier and more regular updates Disaster recovery and backup capabilities

8 SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS & OTHER ISSUES Security Considerations; With all of this sharing of storage space in the clouds, one of the concerns expressed by those considering switching over to cloud application is the safety of their data and their clients data. Examples of the crime and security risks that face cloud service provider are as follows: - Authentication issues and denial of service attacks - Use of cloud computing for criminal activities - Illegal activity by cloud service providers - Attacks on physical security and insider abuse of access - Malware, side channel attacks and vulnerabilities in software applications Other Issues; Legal Less control Privacy Sustainability Abuse

9 Patching operating systems, internet browsers and software applications Installing anti-virus, antimalware tools and firewalls Implementing multifactor authentication Encrypting data travelling between the cloud and the browser Encrypting data stored in the cloud Intrusion detection and prevention systems and network monitoring Perimeter security Shielded server rooms and cages Surveillance Access control Facility access logs ICT-acceptable use policies Password policies User access management policies BYOD policies Staff training Background checks of cloud service provider staff Technical prevention measures Physical Security Organisational policies, awareness and training Presentation Subject Header Crime and security risks involving cloud service providers Authentication issues P P P P P P P P P Denial of service attacks and botnets P P Use of cloud computing for criminal activities P Illegal activity by cloud service providers P P Attacks on physical security P P P P P P Insider abuse of access P P P P P P P Malware P P P P P P P P Side channel attacks P Vulnerabilities in software applications P P P P P P Cryptanalysis of insecure or obsolete encryption P SQL injections P P P P Crime and security risks targeting cloud computing tenants Phishing P P P P P Domain name system attacks P P P P P P Compromising the device accessing the cloud P P P P P P P P P Access management issues P P Attacks targeting the transmission data Session hijacking and session riding Man-in-the-middle attacks Network/packet sniffing P P P

10 CLOUD COMPUTING ACCOUNTING PROGRAMS AVAILABLE

11 WHICH CLOUD ACCOUNTING PROGRAM TO CHOOSE? Sample business Type of accounting package Example product Fencer. Pays upfront for all supplies by credit card, receives cash/cheque/card payments from all customers. Sufficient transactions per month to justify a computer-based system. Freelance news photographer. All customers insist on credit, some insist order numbers are shown on invoice, some require that invoices are sent to specific publications but payment comes from the parent company. Supplies are paid for by cash, credit card or internet banking. Small coffee shop. All customers pay by cash or card, no need to track individual customers. Most suppliers offer terms, some items bought for cash from supermarket. No need for inventory. Enough staff (several parttimers, each working one or two shifts a week) to justify computerised payroll. Owner uses a bookkeeper but wants to keep a close eye on the figures. Cashbook - unless s/he wants to electronically bill customers on the spot, in which case a cloud or cloud-enabled system may be appropriate. Bank feed feature would be a significant timesaver. Middle-range small business accounting software. Doesn t need to update software every year (no payroll, so no need for new tax tables) so a traditional perpetual software licence will probably be cheaper than a subscription or cloud arrangement. Cloud or cloud-enabled middle-range small business accounting system with payroll. Family farming partnership with livestock, harvest loans, employees working irregular amounts of overtime or budget requirements. Consider specialised accounting software or ERP system

12 USEFUL APPS FOR AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURE App Name Cost Optimised for ipad Optimised for iphone Internet required? What it Does Weatherzone Plus $1.99 Yes Yes Yes Weather forecasts and maps. Detailed, reliable, forecasts and past 24 hours. No Delta T, good range of country weather stations. Agro Agro Lite (Free) $1, or Free Yes Yes Yes for some sections AgWorld $ Yes Yes Yes for some sections Create, and store inspection reports from the paddock, record client details and requirements, supports multiple paddocks and properties per client. Syncs when connection is available. Saves when out of range. Free version has limited features. Farm planning, management and reporting app that shares information between farmers, consultants and contractors. Cloud synchronised. Also available as WebApp. Agriplot $0.99 Works on ipad Yes Yes Calculates area/distance from Google Earth and records measurements with photos. results in PDF format. CalcSpray $1.99 Yes Yes No Calculate chemical mixes including total chemical required per tank, per area and water per area. AgVantage Free Works on ipad Yes Yes Calculates dosage rates for animal health products based on entered parameters. Provides specific product information such as withholding periods. Agrowdata $49.99 for 1 year Works on ipad Yes Yes Current and historical agricultural commodity pricing information including CME futures, global fertiliser prices, swaps prices for fertiliser, Australian pricing for MLA and grains and oilseeds, FFAs for Panamax and Handysize vessels.

13 USEFUL APPS FOR SMALL BUSINESS App Name Cost Optimised for ipad Skype Free Works on ipad PayPal Dropbox Polaris Office Fees apply for use of different services Free up to 2GB (larger storage has a monthly fee) Basic model is free Optimised for iphone Internet required? What it Does Yes Yes This app is an effective app to make conference calls and staying connected with clients nationally and internationally. Yes Yes Yes PayPal gives you the great option to pay suppliers and other people. It also allows you to receive money from clients and other persons via credit card payments or direct deposits. It offers a wide range of merchant services. Yes Yes Yes when uploading or downloading documents to work on Yes Yes Yes for some sections A cloud system that allows you to store and share files across the business and with clients. This app allows you to sync, create and work on your Microsoft Office files while you are on the road on your phone or your tablet. Any.do Free for 60MB a month Yes Yes No An app that allows you to plan your day. You can rearrange or shift any to dos during the day or to another day. Any tasks that are completed can be marked of as done. LinkedIn Pulse Free Yes Yes Yes This app allows you to personalize the information that you want to read to improve your business. You can also grow your LinkedIn community to help you network in the industry.

14 STANDARD BUSINESS REPORTING Standard Business Reporting (SBR) is the new government approach to online or digital record keeping to simplify business reporting obligations. Features; SBR is built into accounting software (making it SBR-enabled software). SBR incorporates standard terms that are used in government legislation/reporting. These terms are then linked to terms that are in the accounting software creating consistency for business and government. SBR extracts information that has been recorded in accounting software and prefills this into the relevant government report. The report can then be checked for accuracy and submitted directly to the government (i.e business activity statement)

15 ATO BUSINESS BENCHMARKING The ATO s business benchmarks are a guide to help businesses compare their performance against similar businesses in an industry. These benchmarks are calculated from information reported to the ATO by businesses on their income tax returns and activity statements. Performance Benchmarks; Performance benchmarks provide financial ratios for your industry to help you work out: How you compare to other businesses in your industry Whether you might be able to make improvements in your business Performance benchmark ratios include; Cost of sales to turnover, total expenses to turnover, rent to turnover, labor to turnover Non-capital purchases to total sales, GST-free sales to total sales Input Benchmarks; Input benchmarks show an expected range of income for tradespeople based on the labor and materials they use to undertake domestic projects. They are developed using information provided by industry participants and trade associations. They may help you to: Compare your business to your industry s benchmark range Estimate your turnover based on the labor and materials used Check that your records accurately reflect your income You can find your business s benchmark at

16 Questions Presentation Subject Header