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Thanks to Global Banking and Finance for publishing us in this great article - here’s a sneak peak!
The financial sector has seen cybersecurity threats grow rapidly in volume and strength since the beginning of pandemic lockdowns.
One of the most worrying of these new threats are what’s called account takeover fraud, commonly known by the acronym ATO. This is where hackers gain access to a customer’s account by obtaining their login credentials, usually through phishing emails or stolen database information. Financial ATO, which now accounts for a third of all financial account attacks, targets bank and credit card accounts to ultimately access bank clienteles’ funds.
To protect account holders, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) recently published a regulatory notice to help firms better protect their customers’ data and identity. While it’s not mandatory for financial firms to implement this new FINRA advice, they should still take the time to assess their current cybersecurity practices to ensure their clients are adequately protected.
Unfortunately, cybersecurity is always a hot topic in the banking sector as financial firms spend an estimated $18.5 million each year on defending themselves and their clients from hacks, which is the most of any industry.
Whether it be updating password policies or improving ID verification methods, there are a few tips that the finance sector can immediately implement to make sure their customers are better protected from ATOs.