Cybercrime: Are banks really safe from cyber risks?
In an age where the Internet is taking over, everything is going digital, including banking. More and more people are doing their day-to-day transactions online. Also, banks claim there are numerous security measures in place to prevent online fraud and other mischievous activities. But are the security measures adopted by banks really working? What if the banks themselves fall prey to cybercrime?
Kaspersky studies cybercrime incidents affecting banks
Russian cybersecurity firm and antivirus provider Kaspersky released a report that states a cyber risk involving online banking services of a bank could cost it $1.75 million (about Rs. 11.31cr). Kaspersky found 61% of such cybersecurity incidents came with additional costs for the targeted banks, including loss of data, confidential information, and the reputation of the company or brand.
The cost of cybersecurity incidents
A cybersecurity breach can cost banks/financial institutions as much as $926,000 (about Rs. 5.97cr). Business customers of these organizations who have fallen victim usually see average losses of $10,312 (roughly Rs. 6.65 lakh) while regular customers see losses of around $1,446 (about Rs. 93,000).
Top concerns of banking institutions
The growing menace of cybercrime is worrying banking/financial institutions as they have to provide secure access to customers for online and mobile banking apart from protecting their complex systems. Their top concerns include attacks on online/digital banking services (45%), point-of-sale (PoS) systems (40%), core transactional/back-office systems (35%), and ATMs (26%) apart from social engineering/phishing of their customers (35%).
Kaspersky's statement
"Financial institutions (need) to consider the cost implications of cybersecurity threats and put appropriate measures in place to protect themselves and their customers from incidents involving online banking, particularly from DDoS (denial of service) attacks, which can threaten online banking services."
Victim banks and institutions lose customer trust
Kirill Ilganaev, Head of Kaspersky DDoS Protection, said customers find it difficult to trust a bank with their money if its online services have been attacked. He added banks first need to be more prepared for the dangers DDoS attacks pose to online banking for effectively protecting themselves. He concluded, "It's easy to see why an attack could be so crippling."
