Over the Summer some Wall Street banks ran a crisis scenario in which “bank executives in charge of operations, technology and crisis planning were tasked with detecting how a massive cyber attack was unfolding in the markets – but each one only got to see a tiny red flag waving in a sea of information,” Reuters reports. For years we’ve been recommending Fidelity Investments as a custodian for investor money. For my money no financial institution does technology better than Fidelity Investments. And that would include preparations against cyber attacks. If you don’t already have an account with Fidelity then Quantum Dawn 2 should be all the help you need to beat inertia. In this case, size and scope, which Fidelity has, matters.
Banks are one of the biggest targets for cyber attacks, which have occurred more frequently over the past two years, security experts said.
The most visible attacks affect customers’ access to websites through a distributed denial of service – or “DDOS” – attack. But banks are also worried about more insidious attacks, in which hackers quietly infiltrate systems to swipe valuable data, or lie in wait to plow across the entire industry with a systemic attack – the doomsday scenario Quantum Dawn 2 participants want to avoid.
One key lesson from the drill was that the private sector and government authorities must share information more freely and quickly, said Ed Powers, the national managing principal of Deloitte & Touche LLP’s security and privacy practice, which was an independent observer of Quantum Dawn 2. While firms have detailed information about individual attacks, authorities can help prevent a crisis by sharing information about broader threats when appropriate, he said.
“Cyber attacks that manifest in different organizations can become a systemic issue,” said Powers.
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E.J. Smith works with new investors that have $2 million or more to invest. He can be reached at:ejsmith@youngresearch.com.
