Phishers no more - Xero's latest update revealed

With phishing attacks on the rise, Xero customers now have a safer way to send invoices - Two step authentication (2SA).

Customers will no longer have to send the invoice by email, it's instead sent via Xero. This means that payment terms cannot be changed without having a Xero log in.

"Hackers are gaining entry into email accounts and altering the bank details in invoices before sending to an unassuming client," a company statement read.

According to the 2015 Symantec Intelligence Report, finance companies were at the top of the phishing ladder so Xero's 2SA update couldn't come sooner.

Along with the new security update, online invoices sent through Xero now feature a responsive design, ensuring that recipients of those invoices can pay small businesses more quickly.

Craig Walker, Xero's chief technology officer, says ensuring customers get paid as quickly as possible is vital to the small business economy.

"With today's release, we've embraced responsive web design to ensure that our customers can not only send their customers online invoices, but that those invoices are displayed beautifully, regardless of the device their customers are using," says Walker.

Natalie Firth, director of Melbourne-based bespoke talent acquisition and optimisation consultancy Think Talent, says that in their work, cash flow is the biggest issue.

"Xero's invoicing tool is quick and enables easy modifications to invoices to suit varying client requirements. We can email and track the invoices via Xero and see what is outstanding in one click. We only accept EFT payments so the ability to include a link to online payments means we are making things as easy as possible for our clients," says Firth.

"We are really happy with Xero as it is easy to use, manages our payroll, expenses and invoicing and can scale up to support us as we grow," she adds.