A senior Bank of England official claims cyber-crime is the number one threat to UK financial institutions and banks must reassess their security systems.
Andrew Haldane, director of financial stability at the Bank of England, told the Treasury Select Committee that cyber-attacks are now more worrying for banks than the crisis in the Euro Zone.
He explained that discussions with four of the major banks in the UK six months ago saw them state that cyber-crime was their biggest threat, and a fifth has since followed suit.
Haldane added during his address that a focus on the credit market and liquidity risk means that cyber-attacks may not have been given much attention over the last five years.
However, he has now called for banks to reassess their security systems and make improvements to ensure they avoid being hit by cyber-criminals.
“You can see why the financial sector would be a particularly good target for someone wanting to wreak havoc through the cyber route,” Haldane stated.
“Understanding and management of this risk is still at a somewhat early stage.”
