Financial businesses in Ireland have been urged to batten down the hatches and prepare for inevitable cyberattacks. The bleak warning came from the country’s Central Bank.
The Central Bank has issued guidance on IT risk management and cybersecurity for financial services firms. These are key concerns for the Bank, given their potential impact on firms and their customers, and the risks for financial stability.
The Central Bank said it expects boards and senior management of regulated firms to fully recognise their responsibilities for these issues, and to put them among their top priorities.
‘We are undertaking considerable work to require improved IT risk management and cyber resilience across regulated firms’
– GERRY CROSS, CENTRAL BANK OF IRELAND
It said that firms must robustly address key issues, such as alignment of IT and business strategy, outsourcing risk, change management, cybersecurity, incident response, disaster recovery and business continuity.
Risk to consumers
Firms need to make sure that they understand these risks and that they are managed effectively, said Central Bank director of Policy & Risk, Gerry Cross.
“Developments in technology have fundamentally changed business processes and models in financial firms,” said Cross.
“These advancements have resulted in benefits for firms and their customers.
“However, they also bring significant risks as firms become increasingly interconnected and more reliant on complex IT systems, including outsourcing service providers.”
“The Central Bank is demanding increased effectiveness in this area. We are undertaking considerable work to require improved IT risk management and cyber resilience across regulated firms.
“This includes enhanced supervisory capabilities and increased focus on these risk areas.”
Central Bank image via Shutterstock
