Microsoft 365 E5 vs. E7: What Financial Advisor Firms Need to Know Before Adopting AI Agents

At a Glance: What RIAs Should Know About E5 vs. E7 Start with how you use AI. If employees are using Copilot primarily to draft, summarize, research and analyze information, E5 may still be the right fit. AI agents change the equation. Once AI can access sensitive information, connect to applications or take actions on […]

Does Your Firm Actually Own Its Domain?

At a Glance: Domain Ownership for RIAs Know who controls your domain registration. Website hosting and domain ownership are not the same thing. Keep the domain registration account in your firm’s name even if a broker-dealer or vendor helps manage it. Use delegated access so technology providers can support DNS, email, and website changes without […]

Mobile device management: Securing every device your RIA touches

Picture one of your advisors on the train home, checking client emails and reviewing a portfolio on their personal phone. That one device now holds sensitive enterprise data. If it were lost or stolen, your clients and your reputation would be at risk. Without mobile device management in place, a basic passcode or Face ID […]

Dark web monitoring: Is your RIA’s data already exposed?

Wealth management firms handle millions of dollars in client assets along with highly confidential personal records, making them prime targets for cyber criminals. When employees reuse work passwords on personal websites, those logins often slip into the wrong hands. Automated dark web monitoring works like an early warning system. It continuously scans hidden online spaces […]

Microsoft 365 pricing changes: What you need to know

If your organization hasn’t reviewed its Microsoft 365 subscription recently, now is a good time to start. As of July 1, 2026, Microsoft has updated pricing across its commercial, nonprofit, and government plans, with increases ranging from 5% to as much as 43% depending on the tier. The changes come alongside a packaging update that […]

Deepfake fraud and AI voice scams: How a financial advisor can stop fraud

When a client calls to request an urgent wire transfer, financial advisors need to act fast. But that urgency can create an opportunity for bad actors, who are now using fake audio and video to convincingly impersonate real people and steal funds. They may pose as wealthy clients over the phone or on video calls […]

Shadow AI in Your RIA: The Risk You Probably Didn’t Mean to Create

At a Glance: – Employees are already using AI tools, whether your firm has approved them or not.– This is known as Shadow AI: the use of AI applications outside your firm’s approved technology and IT compliance processes.– The biggest risk isn’t the AI itself. Its sensitive client information being shared with tools your firm […]

Text Messages and SEC Compliance: A Practical Guide for RIAs

At a Glance: 5 Tips for RIA text message archiving – Create a written policy that defines when and how employees can use text messaging for business. – Use a business texting platform instead of personal phones whenever possible. – Archive business text messages using a compliance-focused solution such as Smarsh or Global Relay. – […]

Zero trust security: What it means for your RIA’s network

For decades, financial advisory firms relied on a simple security setup: build a firewall around your office network, set some passwords, and trust everyone inside. But that was then. Today, remote staff, cloud portals, and mobile client apps have completely changed how we work, and with it, the old security perimeter has all but disappeared. […]