Cybersecurity for:
Finance & Banking

Financial sector cybersecurity is the foundation for protecting assets, client data, and banking service continuity. Learn about threats, DORA/PCI DSS requirements, and solutions for banks and fintechs.

64% of financial institutions experienced a successful cyberattack in the past 12 months

Source: IBM X-Force Threat Intelligence Index 2025

Top Threats

critical

BEC (Business Email Compromise)

Fraudulent wire transfer requests and executive impersonation — finance sector loses an average of $4.7M per BEC incident.

critical

Credential theft

Credential stuffing and phishing targeting bank employees. Stolen credentials enable unauthorized transactions.

high

DDoS attacks

Volumetric attacks paralyzing e-banking, mobile apps, and payment systems during peak hours.

high

Insider fraud

Rogue employees with access to transaction systems. Internal fraud accounts for 30% of financial losses.

high

API attacks

Exploiting Open Banking and PSD2 interfaces. Unsecured APIs allow unauthorized access to client data.

Regulatory Requirements

DORA

Digital Operational Resilience Act — mandatory for all EU financial institutions since 2025.

NIS2

Financial sector as essential entity — risk management, 24h incident reporting, regular audits.

PCI DSS

Payment card data security standard — mandatory for all entities processing card data.

GDPR

Client personal data protection — fines up to EUR 20M or 4% of global turnover.

Why financial sector cybersecurity demands the highest level of protection

The financial sector is the most attacked industry worldwide. Banks, insurance companies, and fintechs process millions of transactions daily, manage client assets, and operate infrastructure critical to the economy. Every cybersecurity incident means direct financial losses, client trust erosion, and regulatory consequences.

Since 2025, DORA requires financial institutions to implement comprehensive ICT risk management, operational resilience testing, and incident reporting. Combined with NIS2 requirements, the financial sector faces the strictest regulatory regime in Europe.

Biggest threats to the financial sector

BEC — multi-million dollar fraud

Business Email Compromise attacks involve impersonating executives, contractors, or regulators to authorize fraudulent wire transfers. Average loss: $4.7M per incident. Traditional spam filters are insufficient — multi-layered identity verification is essential.

DDoS attacks on e-banking

DDoS attacks on e-banking systems, mobile apps, and payment gateways can cost a bank millions per day in lost transactions and compensation claims.

Credential theft and account takeover

Credential stuffing, spear phishing, and MFA attacks target employees with access to core banking systems. One compromised account can enable unauthorized transactions.

APIs as a new attack vector

Open Banking and PSD2 opened new attack surfaces. Unsecured APIs enable client data exfiltration, unauthorized transactions, and balance manipulation.

Regulatory requirements

DORA requires financial institutions to implement: ICT risk management, resilience testing (including TLPT — threat-led penetration testing), third-party risk management, 4-hour incident reporting, and regular audits.

PCI DSS v4.0 introduces new requirements: MFA authentication, continuous monitoring, customized approach, with full compliance required since March 2025.