A Mayer Brown study titled “The Next Generation Organization” surveyed 197 financial services leaders and found that cybersecurity is critical to future-proofing their companies: Nearly 80% of financial services leaders feel their organizations are too vulnerable to cyberattacks to plan for them.
Financial Industry Cyber Concerns
A staggering 79% of financial institutions and 77% of investment firms said cyber vulnerability is a major concern impacting their transformation plans – a legitimate concern given that cloud intrusions have skyrocketed 75% according to CrowdStrike.
Cloud computing, powered by AI, will play a key role in transforming business operations. However, given the stringent regulations surrounding financial data, storing information off-premise comes with significant risks. For example, Equifax paid more than $1 billion in fines following a data breach that affected 150 million consumers in 2017.
“We are seeing businesses, organizations and nation states falling victim to increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks,” said Raj De, global cybersecurity and data privacy practice leader at Mayer Brown. “Cyber attacks have many components and companies must navigate a complex and evolving cybersecurity landscape.”
Despite 69% of financial institution leaders and 77% of investment firm leaders recognizing the importance of strong defenses against cyber attacks and advances in AI, gaps remain between goals and reality: 72% of financial institution leaders and 73% of investment firm leaders admit their organizations are struggling to keep up with rapid AI developments.
Securing the Future of Finance
As cybersecurity continues to grow in importance, Trend Micro research highlights a worrying communication gap between IT security leaders and C-suite executives, with IT leaders feeling pressured to downplay cyber risks in the boardroom. This, combined with the cyber insurance market’s frequent inability to cover breach costs, highlights the multifaceted challenges ahead.
AI-powered cyber defenses offer hope: “AI-powered cybersecurity tools and systems can recognize patterns, automate processes and point out anomalies to mitigate threats and provide greater data protection,” says Oliver Yaros, partner at Mayer Brown.
The survey revealed that 77% of investment firms and 69% of financial institutions believe they need to demonstrate resilience against cyberattacks and stay ahead of advancements in AI. Understanding the threats is essential, but action is essential. Financial institutions must recognize the connection between cybersecurity and growth and address their own shortcomings to avoid future financial impacts.
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