Banks on high alert amid intel on cyberattack threat

New Delhi: If you also have a bank account then there is a bad news for you. The shadow of a cyber attack looms over bank accounts. Banking regulator RBI has alerted banks about this. The central bank has instructed all banks to remain prepared in view of the threat of cyber attacks on bank accounts.

The Reserve Bank has instructed all banks to remain prepared 24×7 to detect threats. RBI has received information through confidential sources regarding cyber attack. According to a report in the Economic Times, RBI has issued an alert by sending letters to all banks and financial institutions.

Authorities have advised banks to enhance surveillance in order to identify cyber threats and expedite security measures.

This alert from the Reserve Bank comes at a time when recently, a social media post warned Indian bank account holders about the threat. A social media post claimed that a hacker group named LulzSec is targeting Indian banks. LulzSec has previously executed several high-profile cyber attacks. It was believed that the hacker group LulzSec had become inactive. However, recently there have been reports of its reactivation.

Banks will need to continuously check network activities and server logs to detect cyber attacks. In addition, banks need to keep an eye on critical payment systems like SWIFT, card payments networks, and online fund transfer systems like RTGS, NEFT, and UPI.

It is increasing rapidly in the advancing digital era. According to the recent Financial Stability Report released by RBI, in the last 20 years, the financial sector has reported more than 20,000 instances of cyber incidents and digital attacks, resulting in losses exceeding 20 billion dollars. This means there are approximately 1,000 cyber attacks reported every year, causing an average annual loss of 1 billion dollars.

This is not the first time a warning about cyber attacks on banking systems has been issued. Last year, CERT-In (Indian Computer Emergency Response Team) also expressed concerns about such threats. Now, after the Reserve Bank’s alert, banks will need to intensify efforts to detect and mitigate these risks.

Cyber attackers can target banking systems, compromising the personal and financial information of ordinary customers.