Improving financial cybersecurity at an
international level must be a key agenda item at the G20 Summit in
China this month (September 4th-5th).
This is according to a group of prominent US
senators, who have urged president Barack Obama to raise this critical issue at
the event.
In a letter to the White House, Gary Peters,
Sherrod Brown, Mark Warner, Martin Heinrich, Kirsten Gillibrand and Debbie
Stabenow, said that a “coordinated strategy” is vital, Reuters reported.
This is especially true of “critical financial
institutions”, which are increasingly being targeted by highly sophisticated
gangs of cybercriminals.
“Our financial institutions are connected in order
to facilitate global commerce, but cybercriminals – whether independent or
state-sponsored – imperil this international system in a way few threats have,”
the letter stated.
The multimillion dollar cyberheist against Bangladesh Bank in February, 2016, was cited by the senators as a particular cause for concern.
The multimillion dollar cyberheist against Bangladesh Bank in February, 2016, was cited by the senators as a particular cause for concern.
It revealed, for example, security shortfalls within SWIFT, a global provider of secure
financial messaging services that deals with billions of dollars a day.
The senators continued by saying that to maintain
financial cybersecurity and prevent similar attacks, nations need to “erect
more robust defenses and collaborative systems to prevent and mitigate the
impact of successful attacks”.
Earlier this year, the Global Commission on
Internet Governance recommended that cyberattacks should be included in
international humanitarian law.
Its report, One Internet, stated: “Recognizing that
the global interconnection of devices and economies makes the world’s
communications and financial systems vulnerable to unintended effects of
cyberattacks.
“Governments should publicly acknowledge that they
will exercise restraint, avoid destabilizing developments and will apply in cyberspace
(as in conventional armed conflict) international humanitarian law and the
Geneva Conventions.”
Delen
