Financial Services IT Support Adelaide

In short

What does IT support for financial services firms in Adelaide include?

Otaris provides managed IT support and cyber security for financial planning and advice firms in Adelaide. We support platforms including Iress Xplan, Class, Xero and MYOB, and build firm IT to meet AFSL and ASIC cyber security obligations through the Essential Eight. Plans start at $139 per user per month. Adelaide-based since 2006.

AFSL obligations · ASIC expectations · client wealth data

Eight questions to ask the IT provider you already have

ASIC has already taken a licensee to court over its cyber security arrangements, and the finding was not about a breach — it was about the arrangements. That reframes the question for an AFSL holder: you are judged not only on whether something happened, but on whether you can show what you had in place. That evidence either exists in your provider's systems or it does not exist at all.

So don't take our word for anything. These eight questions come straight from the Essential Eight — the standard published by the Australian Signals Directorate, which we didn't write and don't own. Each one can only be answered with a document. Ask them, and notice which answers arrive as a report and which arrive as a reassurance.

01
Patch applications
Xplan, AdviserLogic, the portfolio administration tools and the CRM — which were patched last month?
A real answer looks like: A dated patch report per application, with exceptions named.
02
Patch operating systems
How many machines that touch client portfolio data are on an OS build past its support date?
A real answer looks like: A device list with OS build numbers and end-of-support dates.
03
Multi-factor authentication
If an adviser's mailbox is taken over, what stops a fraudulent redemption or transfer instruction leaving as them?
A real answer looks like: A conditional access report plus the mail-flow rules that catch payment-instruction changes.
04
Restrict admin privileges
Who can change a client's registered bank account, and what second check exists on that change?
A real answer looks like: A named list of who holds that permission and whether dual approval is enforced in the software.
05
Application control
An adviser installs a free screen-recording tool to send a client a walkthrough. Does it run?
A real answer looks like: The application control policy, its enforcement mode, and last month's blocked-execution log.
06
Restrict Office macros
The modelling workbooks run on macros. What is the policy that permits those and blocks an inbound one?
A real answer looks like: The macro policy showing default-block, with trusted locations and signed exceptions listed.
07
User application hardening
The browsers used for platform and custodian logins — what hardening is applied, and when was drift last checked?
A real answer looks like: The hardening baseline applied and the date of the last drift check.
08
Regular backups
If the CRM and file notes were encrypted tonight, when did you last prove a restore — and would that evidence satisfy ASIC?
A real answer looks like: A restore test report with a date, a measured duration, and a signature you could hand to an auditor.

And one more, just for your industry

If ASIC asked tomorrow to see our cyber security arrangements, what exactly would you hand them — and can I see it now?

A real answer looks like: A current written information security policy set, mapped to a recognised framework, with review dates.

Asked them? Here's what to do with the answers.

A provider doing the work sends a report. One who isn't sends a sentence. If the answers came back vague, that is itself an answer — and you now know which questions to ask again in writing.

To check the same ground against the government standard yourself, the scorecard further down this page takes about two minutes. You keep the result, and there is no form to fill in.

Or ask us — we do this every week.

Book a free consultation

We know what's really at stake for an advice firm

You hold some of the most sensitive data there is — financial positions, super balances, tax file numbers, identity documents, estate and family details. Clients trust you to protect it, and so does the law. In financial services, cyber security has moved from good practice to a regulatory obligation.

The line in the sand is the RI Advice case: in 2022 the Federal Court found that inadequate cyber risk management was a breach of an AFS licensee's core obligations under the Corporations Act — the first ruling of its kind in Australia. ASIC has since named licensees' failure to have adequate cybersecurity protections a top enforcement priority. On top of that sit your Privacy Act duties and breach-reporting obligations. For an advice firm, a cyber incident isn't just downtime and lost trust — it can become a compliance event.

You shouldn't have to be your own IT and compliance department on top of advising clients. That's where we come in.

“We take IT completely off your plate — and align your practice to what your licence requires.”

The IT challenges we solve for advice firms

Cyber risk is now licence risk

Since the RI Advice ruling, inadequate cyber management can breach your AFSL obligations. We build and document your cybersecurity to Essential Eight, so you can show ASIC the risk is being actively, properly managed.

Protecting client wealth & identity data

Financial data is exactly what attackers want. We lock down where it lives and who can reach it, replace outdated antivirus with modern application whitelisting, and back everything up so it can't be lost or held to ransom.

Privacy Act & breach-reporting duties

AFS licensees carry concurrent obligations across the Corporations Act and Privacy Act, including breach reporting. We help align your systems with those duties and prepare a calm, fast response if a notifiable breach ever occurs.

Enterprise-grade security at your scale

A small practice faces the same threats as a large one — without the same budget. We deliver enterprise-grade device and security management, priced and scaled for your firm, so size is no longer a disadvantage.

Outsourcing, platforms & third-party risk

You rely on licensees, platforms and software you don't control. We secure how your systems connect to them, so your supply chain doesn't become your weak point.

Reliable performance, wherever you are

Slow systems and patchy connections waste time and frustrate clients. We put workloads where they run fastest, add connectivity failover, and keep you working even when the internet isn't perfect.

Getting your practice sorted is simple

1

Schedule a call

Talk to a real person who understands advice firms and your obligations. No sales pitch — just a conversation about what's working and what's keeping you up at night.

2

We assess your IT and build a roadmap

We audit your systems, check them against the Essential Eight and your AFSL and Privacy Act obligations, find the gaps, and give you a clear plan you could put in front of a regulator. No jargon, no hidden costs.

3

We manage everything, so you can focus on advice

From 24/7 monitoring and cybersecurity to everyday support, we become the IT team your practice has always needed.

Book a free consultation

Everything your practice needs, under one trusted partner

Cybersecurity & Essential Eight alignment

Documented, defensible protection that supports your AFSL obligations.

Modern endpoint protection

Application whitelisting and centralised device management, not outdated antivirus.

Privacy Act & breach-response readiness

Controls and a documented plan for your reporting duties.

Backup & business continuity

Off-site backups and a tested plan so client data is never lost.

Secure Microsoft 365 & Teams

Locked-down email, files and client meetings, with reliable performance and failover.

Advice software support

We support the planning and advice platforms your practice relies on — alongside Microsoft 365, Xero and MYOB — keeping them secure, updated and integrated with the rest of your systems.

Financial services software & systems we support

Otaris supports the advice and administration platforms Adelaide financial services firms run, alongside the licence obligations that govern them.

Iress Xplan
Class
Xero
MYOB
AFSL & ASIC cyber obligations
Microsoft 365

A local team advice firms trust

Otaris has been looking after Australian businesses since 2006 — that's 20+ years in IT. We're Adelaide-based with Australia-wide coverage, and we explain everything in plain language. You'll never be handed off to an overseas call centre.

Mansell Financial Services, Barossa Valley financial planning practice

Client story — Mansell Financial Services, Barossa Valley (5 users · 2016)

Mansell Financial Services is a five-person financial planning firm in the Barossa Valley, an Authorised Representative of AMP / Akumin, guiding clients through retirement, super and wealth planning. They were running on a hosted remote desktop that lagged on regional internet and still relied on traditional antivirus that no longer met modern standards. Otaris re-architected their IT around where the practice is today — fast managed local computers, every device under Microsoft Intune, ThreatLocker in place of old antivirus to align with Essential Eight, files in Microsoft Teams, Fortinet with 4G failover, and Microsoft Copilot in everyday work.

The result: a genuinely enterprise-grade, compliant solution at a five-person scale and cost, with IT incidents down to almost zero and a recurring monthly server cost removed.

Read the Mansell Financial Services case study

20+ years in IT
Adelaide-based
Microsoft partner
Essential Eight aligned
Enterprise-grade IT at small-firm scale
Hundreds of Australian businesses supported

Imagine a practice where security is handled and compliance is covered

Picture a week where your systems are fast, your client data is protected, and your cybersecurity is documented to a standard you could put in front of ASIC. Your team works securely from the office or remotely, a patchy connection no longer slows the day, and if something goes wrong you recover fast. You're confident you're meeting your AFSL and Privacy Act obligations — and you can get back to advising clients.

That's the difference between worrying about IT and having a partner who's already handled it.

“Strengthening your digital confidence.”

Insights for financial services

What we get asked most often by financial services businesses, answered plainly.

Solutions for your industry

The services we most often deploy for financial services.

View all solutions

Frequently asked questions

Financial planning firms need strong security because they hold sensitive client wealth, identity and investment data and operate under strict regulatory expectations. That means multi-factor authentication, encryption, monitored systems and reliable backups at minimum. Otaris aligns Adelaide financial services firms to the Australian Essential Eight and manages security continuously. To review your obligations and setup, call 1800 456 567.

You meet your obligations by putting the right security controls, record-keeping and data protections in place and being able to demonstrate them, covering the Privacy Act and your licensing requirements. Otaris helps Adelaide advice firms implement Essential Eight-aligned controls, monitoring and documentation so compliance is evidenced rather than assumed. We explain it in plain language. Call 1800 456 567 to map your requirements.

Yes. Otaris secures the platforms financial advisers rely on, including advice tools and CRMs, with access controls, monitoring, encryption and backup so client data stays protected and recoverable. We manage the underlying IT and integrations so your systems work together securely. If something goes wrong, you have a local team to call. Call 1800 456 567 to discuss your platforms.

You reduce these risks with email security, multi-factor authentication, staff awareness training and clear payment verification processes, since financial firms are heavily targeted by fraud and phishing. Otaris layers these protections and monitors for suspicious activity 24/7, so attempts are caught before money moves. Technology and trained staff together are the best defence. Call 1800 456 567 to strengthen your protection.

A breach can seriously damage client trust in a financial services firm, since clients share their most sensitive information expecting it to be safe, and the reputational harm often outlasts the technical fix. The goal is to prevent breaches and respond well if one occurs. Otaris protects Adelaide firms with Essential Eight-aligned security and 24/7 monitoring. Call 1800 456 567 to assess your risk.

Otaris managed IT support plans range from $139 to $219 per user per month — Fortress ($139, full Essential Eight Maturity Level 1), Knox ($179, Maturity Level 2) and Titan ($219, Maturity Level 3) — with a five-user minimum and pricing published openly on our pricing page. Every plan covers support, security and backups in one flat per-person fee, so the practice can budget precisely. Call 1800 456 567 for a quote.

ASIC expects AFSL holders to have adequate cyber risk management in place — and has shown it will act against licensees that fall short. In practice that means multi-factor authentication, access controls, monitoring, tested backups and a documented incident response. Otaris aligns Adelaide advice firms to the Essential Eight and provides the evidence trail. Call 1800 456 567 to review your obligations.

Otaris supports Adelaide advice firms running Iress Xplan, Class, Xero and MYOB — managing the environment, secure access, updates and backups around those platforms and working with the vendors when application issues arise. One local team is accountable for everything the practice runs on. Call 1800 456 567 to discuss your setup.

Advice firms protect client wealth and identity data with strict access controls, multi-factor authentication, encryption, monitored systems and tested backups. Otaris secures Adelaide financial services firms to the Australian Government's Essential Eight and manages it continuously — matching the seriousness of the data you hold. Call 1800 456 567 to review your controls.

A well-run switch is staged: document the environment, take over licences and vendor relationships, run both providers in parallel briefly, then cut over outside business hours with tested backups in place — so client reviews and advice work never stall. Otaris manages this handover for Adelaide advice firms as a defined onboarding process and explains each step in plain language. Call 1800 456 567 to plan a clean transition.

No name · No email · No follow-up

Check your Essential Eight score

Eight questions, about two minutes. You’ll come out with a plain list of what’s holding up, what isn’t, and what it takes to fix each gap. Some of it you’ll be able to do yourself. Some of it honestly needs a hand — and if you’d rather not deal with any of it, it’s all covered in our support plans.

The list at the end is yours to keep and act on — that part is free, and there is nothing to sign for it. If you would rather we took some or all of it on, ask on chat and we will tell you what is involved.

The Essential Eight is an Australian Government standard, and every small business should be able to measure itself against it without paying for the privilege or handing over their details. There’s no form here, so whether we ever speak is your call.

One question for each of the Essential Eight, all at Maturity Level 1 — the baseline ASD says every small business should meet. About two minutes.

Question 1 of 8Patch applications

Apps

OS

MFA

Admin

Control

Macros

Harden

Backups

answered you are here still to answer· eight groups, one per Essential Eight strategy · click any square to jump to it

Does anyone send you a patch report each month or on request, showing what got updated and what didn't?

Choose one of these four answersor press 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 to answer

Not sure what this question is asking? Ask on chat and we’ll explain what the standard means.

The two questions everybody asks last

What does it cost — and what happens to our week if we switch?

Fair questions, so here are both answers on one page. Our plans are the same three Essential Eight maturity levels you just read about — you aren't choosing between vague bundles, you're choosing how far up the Government's own standard you want to be.

Most popular
Fortress
$139/user/month
Essential Eight · Maturity Level 1
✓ Compliant · all 8 of 8 controls at ML1
Full compliance with the Australian Government's Essential Eight baseline — all eight strategies, implemented, managed and documented so you can prove it.
Where most businesses land: unlimited support for everything, full Essential Eight compliance, and human threat hunters watching around the clock.
- Support, unlimited
  When anything breaks — laptop, printer, server, Wi-Fi, software — your team calls, we fix it. No per-incident fees, no hourly rate, no cap: the 15-minute clock disappears entirely. Because calling costs nothing, nobody hesitates to report the small problems — so they never get the chance to become big ones. Priority goes by business impact: if it's stopping work, it jumps the queue.
- New starter on Monday? Software to install, permissions to change, a printer that needs configuring? All covered, unlimited, no extra charge. Your team asks through the portal or picks up the phone and it's done — a full IT department on call, without the salaries.
- The service desk fixes what breaks; your Account Manager owns where your technology is going. One named person who knows your business — not a rotating cast. At regular reviews they walk you through your Essential Eight Cyber Security Scorecard — what improved, what's exposed, what's worth doing next and what isn't — and when you ring with a half-formed "could we…?", they already know your setup well enough to give you a straight answer.
- Security, complete
  Fortress is where real compliance starts. All eight of the Australian Government's Essential Eight strategies — application control, patching applications and operating systems, macro settings, application hardening, restricted admin privileges, multi-factor authentication and regular backups — implemented, managed and documented. When your insurer, your biggest client or a government tender asks about your security posture, you have a real answer.
- Defender blocks software known to be bad. ThreatLocker works the other way around: nothing runs unless it's on your approved list — in their words, "if it is not allowed, it does not run." Ransomware doesn't run. A dodgy download doesn't run. Approved software is also ringfenced, so your PDF reader can open documents but can't reach into your files or out to the internet. Application control is the first strategy of the Essential Eight — it's a key reason Fortress reaches full compliance.
- Antivirus stops the attacks the world already knows about; EDR is for the ones nobody has seen yet. Huntress watches the behaviour of every computer for the tell-tale signs of an intruder — a foothold hidden in a legitimate program, ransomware warming up, an attacker moving between machines — and real analysts in a 24/7 security operations centre review what it finds. When something is genuinely wrong, they isolate the machine and evict the intruder. Average response: eight minutes. At 2pm or 2am.
Start with Fortress
Knox
$179/user/month
Essential Eight · Maturity Level 2
✓ Compliant · all 8 of 8 controls at ML2
Maturity Level 2 — stronger protection for businesses adversaries deliberately target, and the level expected for government and defence work.
Businesses handling sensitive data or working with government, defence and regulated industries — where compliance isn't optional.
Everything in Fortress, plus
- Compliance & data
  Level 1 stops opportunists. Level 2 is built for adversaries who pick their targets — because of what you do, what you hold, or who your clients are. Application control tightens, patching windows shrink, MFA expands, admin privileges narrow. For government and defence work, ML2 is frequently the entry ticket. We implement every control, keep the documentation current, and stand beside you at audit time.
- If you work with Defence — directly or in the supply chain — DISP security standards aren't negotiable; without them you can't hold the contracts. We implement the required controls, configure your systems to DISP guidelines, maintain the paperwork and walk you through assessment. Already in the sector? You stay eligible without the stress. Trying to enter it? This is the technical foundation to bid.
- Most data leaks aren't hacks — they're a tired employee emailing the wrong attachment to the wrong person. Microsoft Information Protection finds your sensitive data — tax file numbers, credit cards, Medicare numbers — wherever it lives, labels it, and stops it being forwarded, shared or downloaded where it shouldn't be. The label travels with the document. For DISP, ISO 27001 and Privacy Act obligations, it's protection you can demonstrate, not just claim.
- Double the mailbox, and the most Microsoft offers — for businesses where email is the record: contracts, drawings, advice, compliance history. Even your heaviest users won't hit the ceiling.
- Knox doesn't just implement the controls — it documents them. You get the audit-ready evidence pack that DISP assessors, ISO 27001 auditors, cyber insurers and enterprise clients ask for: what's in place, how it's configured, and proof it's maintained and reviewed. When someone asks you to demonstrate your security, you hand them a document instead of scrambling.
- Advanced threat defence
  An attack isn't one event — credentials stolen by email, then files touched, then privileges escalated. If your tools work in silos, nobody sees the pattern. Defender XDR joins every signal — email, devices, identities, cloud apps — into a single picture, so our analysts see the whole attack chain at once and shut down every part of it together.
Start with Knox
Titan
$219/user/month
Essential Eight · Maturity Level 3
✓ Compliant · all 8 of 8 controls at ML3
Maturity Level 3 — the highest level, built to withstand determined, well-resourced, targeted attackers. For those who can't afford "almost."
Chosen by organisations where a breach would be catastrophic — defence primes, health, finance and legal. The standard for those who can't afford "almost."
Everything in Knox, plus
- Maximum protection · Maturity Level 3
  The ceiling of the framework — designed with determined, well-resourced and state-sponsored attackers in mind. Every one of the eight controls implemented at full strength, maintained and validated continuously so you meet the standard every day, not just at audit. Typically held by organisations with classified information, critical infrastructure or high-value intellectual property.
- At Maturity Level 3 the patching window tightens to its strictest: critical vulnerabilities in internet-facing services and key software are fixed within 48 hours of a patch being available — not at the next maintenance window. We track your exposure continuously, so the clock starts the moment a fix exists.
- Application control runs at its strictest setting — only approved software executes, approved applications are ringfenced so they can't be turned against you, and the allowlist itself is validated against Microsoft's recommended block rules. This is the control that stops ransomware and never-before-seen malware from running at all.
- The full Essential Eight user application hardening at Maturity Level 3: web browsers, Microsoft Office and PDF software are blocked from launching other programs or running unvetted web content, risky scripting like Windows PowerShell is locked down and its use logged, and legacy components attackers exploit are removed. It closes the small, technical gaps that sophisticated attackers rely on once the obvious doors are shut.
- Security events from across your environment are collected centrally, protected from tampering, and monitored. If something does happen, there's a complete, trustworthy record to investigate and report from — the difference between "we think we're fine" and being able to prove exactly what occurred.
- The administrative accounts attackers most want are the hardest to get and the most closely watched: access is restricted, granted only when it's genuinely needed, and every privileged action is logged. At ML3, no-one holds permanent keys to everything.
Start with Titan

Minimum 5 users on all plans.Add-ons available on every plan: Microsoft Copilot AI · Azure & AWS virtual servers.

Compare the three plans side by side

And the part you're actually worried about

Nearly every advice business we speak to raises the same real objection, and it isn't price — it's the fortnight of chaos they assume comes with changing providers. There isn't one. The work happens before anything changes, and changing providers is our problem to manage, not yours to survive.

04
Behind-the-Scenes Setup
We prepare the new environment around your platform and custodian logins, CRM and file notes, documenting each control as we implement it rather than afterwards from memory.
You finish with evidence, not just a working system.
05
The Seamless Switchover
We move your advice software, client files and file notes as one, out of hours, with nothing left behind on the old system. Payment-instruction controls go on at the same time.
Client reviews and redemptions never pause.
06
Your Team Gets Comfortable
Advisers and support staff get separate walkthroughs, and your responsible manager gets the written version they can hand to a compliance consultant.
Your obligations are covered, in writing.

See all seven steps, start to finish

In financial advice, cyber security isn't just IT. It's a licence obligation.

What does IT support for financial services firms in Adelaide include?

Eight questions to ask the IT provider you already have

Xplan, AdviserLogic, the portfolio administration tools and the CRM — which were patched last month?

How many machines that touch client portfolio data are on an OS build past its support date?

If an adviser's mailbox is taken over, what stops a fraudulent redemption or transfer instruction leaving as them?

Who can change a client's registered bank account, and what second check exists on that change?

An adviser installs a free screen-recording tool to send a client a walkthrough. Does it run?

The modelling workbooks run on macros. What is the policy that permits those and blocks an inbound one?

The browsers used for platform and custodian logins — what hardening is applied, and when was drift last checked?

If the CRM and file notes were encrypted tonight, when did you last prove a restore — and would that evidence satisfy ASIC?

If ASIC asked tomorrow to see our cyber security arrangements, what exactly would you hand them — and can I see it now?

Asked them? Here's what to do with the answers.

We know what's really at stake for an advice firm

The IT challenges we solve for advice firms

Cyber risk is now licence risk

Protecting client wealth & identity data

Privacy Act & breach-reporting duties

Enterprise-grade security at your scale

Outsourcing, platforms & third-party risk

Reliable performance, wherever you are

Getting your practice sorted is simple

Schedule a call

We assess your IT and build a roadmap

We manage everything, so you can focus on advice

Everything your practice needs, under one trusted partner

Cybersecurity & Essential Eight alignment

Modern endpoint protection

Privacy Act & breach-response readiness

Backup & business continuity

Secure Microsoft 365 & Teams

Advice software support

Financial services software & systems we support

A local team advice firms trust

Imagine a practice where security is handled and compliance is covered

Insights for financial services

How should advisers share documents with clients securely?

How should an advice firm handle long-term record keeping?

What should an advice firm ask before choosing an IT provider?

Does a financial advice firm need the Essential Eight?

What happens to your IT when an advice firm changes licensee?

Can financial advisers use AI?

More questions we are asked about this

Solutions for your industry

Cybersecurity

Essential Eight Cyber Security Scorecard

Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery

Frequently asked questions

What IT security do financial planning firms in Adelaide need?

How do we meet compliance and privacy obligations as a financial adviser?

Can you protect client data held in our advice and CRM software?

How do we protect against invoice fraud and phishing?

What happens to our clients' trust if we have a data breach?

How much does IT support cost for a financial services firm in Adelaide?

What are ASIC's cyber security expectations for AFSL holders?

Who supports Iress Xplan and Class in Adelaide?

How do financial advice firms protect client data?

How does an advice firm switch IT providers without disruption?

Check your Essential Eight score

Does anyone send you a patch report each month or on request, showing what got updated and what didn't?

What does it cost — and what happens to our week if we switch?

Fortress

Knox

Titan

And the part you're actually worried about

Behind-the-Scenes Setup

The Seamless Switchover

Your Team Gets Comfortable

Protect your clients' data and your licence.