Understanding Financial Cyber Threats

In the sixth session of AIG Academy Connect: Financial Cyber Threaths, the discussion was focused on how the pandemic has changed the cyber environment, as well as how criminals adapt to the changing business landscape. The event was hosted by Michael Jensen, General Manager AIG Nordics, while Mark Camillo, Head of Cyber at AIG EMEA, and Tom Keatinge, Director of the RUSI Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies, presented the topic from their points of expertise.  

Due to COVID-19, businesses have changed the way they work;
 

• A large number of employees are nowadays working remotely.
• Several businesses have been forced to chose between continuing to operate and operating securely.
• The traditional business models are being modified as they are challenged by the lockdown.
   

As a consequence, criminals are exploiting the vulnerabilities created by this changing environment, leading to that organizations and agencies such as Europol and Interpol have provided guidance on the source of criminal activity they have seen increasing during the pandemic. These additional challenges should be added  to the otherwise developing levels of cyber threats, which have been rising throughout recent years: preliminary results showed that cyber claim activity increased in 2019 by around 40% when compared to 2018 (Cyber Claims Report AIG 2019).

The severity of the claims is also on the rise. Criminals do their due diligence, they search for vulnerabilities and how to get access to systems. When they succeed, they continue to research about backup systems, number of servers and any sensitive information that can make the company more willing to pay the ransom when they take control over the company’s systems. That said, the main driver of costs is the business interruption caused by the ransomware, not the ransom required by the hacker.#

“Cyber crime, in the form of ransomware, fraud or other, can happen to any company. The business services sector is always on the top amongst most targeted sectors due to its high level of sensitive information, not only for their own organization but also a lot of sensitive client data. However, other sectors should not believe that they are safe from cyber threats since more and more companies are being targeted. The past 18 months there have for example been a significant number of attacks on manufacturing segments and the transportation sector.” says Mark Camillo

Learn more about cyber threats and what your company can do to minimize the risk of fraud and ransomware by watching the full webinar through the link below.