The Weekly Close is the Successful Bookkeeper's weekly note. This is issue 3, from Thursday 22 October 2026.
In this issue: why bookkeepers should be the ones who get passwords right, this week's listen with Craig Taylor, phishing season for firms, ProAdvisor becoming ProPartner, and what weight-loss drugs mean for restaurant clients. About four minutes.
We all need to take cybersecurity really seriously. That means being impeccable about passwords and using a password manager like 1Password. This is where bookkeepers can shine and speak up for good habits across our industry, because it's what our work is all about. We reconcile. We make sure zero is zero.
A little extra effort now saves a lot of time down the track. It's no different from what we say about clean books. Sure, you can cut corners, but eventually that catches up with you. That's how we should think about security. A shared password in a spreadsheet is like an unreconciled account. It looks fine right up until the day it isn't.
I know it can feel like a lot is changing right now. Every time I read the news, every time I talk with a business owner, even in our own business, there's always something.
Bookkeepers should be proud and loud that we're the ones who help clients keep it all together and get it done right, so the owner can focus on their own work. Part of that is noticing what's happening in the world that could affect a client. Take the new appetite-reducing medications and people drinking less: that changes what restaurants sell, and if you keep the books for a restaurant or a bar, you may see it in the numbers before the owner does.
That's what we hope to bring you here too: the habits that protect your firm, and the changes that may turn up in your clients' books.
This week's listen: Craig Taylor on why cyber literacy is just common sense (EP554).
Scott Carr warns that phishing aimed at accounting firms peaks right after extension season, when staff are tired. The bait is a fake tax-office notice, a "new client" email with an attachment or a lookalike e-signature page; his answer is a "report it, don't click it" culture.
What it means for you: Tell clients in writing that you never ask for documents by attachment, check every new client on a phone number you looked up yourself, and add an "I clicked" step to your written security plan.
Source: CPA Practice Advisor.
Intuit says the ProAdvisor Program becomes Intuit ProPartner Accountants in early 2027, current discounts are unaffected, and certifications and training stay free. QuickBooks Online Accountant still closes in December 2026, replaced by Intuit Accountant Suite with no data migration needed.
What it means for you: Update any procedures and onboarding documents that mention QBOA or ProAdvisor before December, so the change doesn't catch your team or clients off guard.
Source: QuickBooks Canada.
Between 4 and 7 percent of UK adults use GLP-1 drugs, KAM estimates, and 39 percent of users told YouGov they drink less. Their takeaway spending fell from £49 to £30 a month.
What it means for you: If you have restaurant, bar or food clients, watch average order value and the drinks share of sales, and raise any drop with the owner early.
Source: The Drinks Business.
Put every login that touches client money into a password manager, and turn on multifactor wherever it isn't on yet. Start with banking, payroll and the accounting software.
Which client login is still the hardest to get into a password manager, and why? Subscribers can reply to any issue of The Weekly Close, and the best answers run in the next one.
Michael
P.S. A one-word answer is plenty: would an internationally recognised UK qualification be valuable to you? I mean the IAB's LCCI qualifications, short ones you stack up over time rather than one long course. Subscribers can reply to this issue with yes, no or maybe.
The Successful Bookkeeper podcast (EP554, Craig Taylor), CPA Practice Advisor (19 October, Scott Carr), QuickBooks Canada (15 October), and The Drinks Business (1 April, citing KAM and YouGov).