Cyberattacks have become a significant concern for organizations across all sectors. In 2021, a surge in high-profile cyberattacks highlighted the vulnerability of businesses to cyber threats and emphasized the need for robust cybersecurity measures. Among all sectors, banks and financial institutions are particularly at risk due to the sensitive information they manage and the high potential for financial gain by cybercriminals.

Why are banks at risk?

Banks handle vast amounts of sensitive customer information, including personal financial details, social security numbers, credit card information, and bank account data. This valuable data makes financial institutions prime targets for cybercriminals looking to exploit vulnerabilities for monetary gain. According to IBM’s 2021 Cost of a Data Breach Report, data breaches in the financial industry rank second only to the healthcare sector in terms of costs. The exposure of banks to diverse cyber threats, including ransomware, data breaches, and phishing schemes, can result in severe operational, financial, and reputational damage.

Common cyber threats to banks

Cyberattacks targeting banks can take many forms. Here’s a closer look at some of the most prevalent cyber threats in the financial sector:

1. Phishing

Phishing remains one of the most common attack vectors used against banks. Cybercriminals send fraudulent emails, messages, or links to trick recipients into divulging sensitive information or downloading malware. Phishing schemes often impersonate legitimate entities, such as a bank's customer service, to steal credentials, install malware, or lead users to fake websites.

Phishing not only jeopardizes individual customer accounts but can also compromise a bank's internal systems when employees are targeted through spear-phishing or whaling attacks.

2. Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks

DDoS attacks involve flooding a bank’s network or servers with an overwhelming number of requests, rendering them unable to handle legitimate traffic. For banks, this can result in disruptions to online banking services, ATM networks, and payment systems, potentially leading to reputational damage and financial losses.

DDoS attacks are often used as a distraction to mask more severe intrusions, such as data breaches or ransomware attacks, further exacerbating their impact on financial institutions.

3. Vulnerability exploitation

Cybercriminals are continuously scanning banks' internet-facing applications for vulnerabilities. Exploitable flaws in software or network systems can allow attackers to inject malicious code, steal data, or perform denial-of-service attacks. Banks' extensive use of legacy systems and third-party applications can increase the likelihood of vulnerability exploitation.

4. Account takeover

The rapid adoption of secure remote access solutions, especially with the rise of telework, has introduced new vulnerabilities. Attackers often use stolen or guessed credentials to gain unauthorized access to banking systems, enabling them to steal customer data or deploy malware. The ease with which cybercriminals can obtain credentials from data breaches, phishing schemes, or the dark web makes account takeover a growing threat.

5. Ransomware

Ransomware attacks pose a significant threat to banks, as they can interrupt operations, leading to financial and reputational damage. In these attacks, cybercriminals encrypt the bank's data and demand a ransom for decryption. Even worse, modern ransomware attacks often involve the theft of sensitive information, which is then used for blackmail or sold on the dark web.

6. Cryptominers

Cryptomining malware exploits a bank's computing resources to mine cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. This covert mining consumes substantial computing power, leading to system slowdowns and increased energy costs. Over time, cryptominers can degrade a bank's infrastructure and affect operational performance.

7. Infostealers

Financial institutions hold vast amounts of customer data, including personal identification information and financial details. Infostealer malware targets these databases to collect and exfiltrate sensitive information. This not only results in data breaches but also exposes banks to regulatory penalties and loss of customer trust.

8. Botnets

Botnet malware infiltrates a bank’s systems, allowing attackers to remotely control infected devices. Cybercriminals use these botnets to launch coordinated DDoS attacks, conduct credential stuffing, and distribute more malware, intensifying the risk landscape for banks.

How NVIS AI can protect banks against cyberattacks

To combat these sophisticated threats, banks need a proactive cybersecurity approach that goes beyond traditional measures. NVIS AI's suite of solutions can help financial institutions mitigate cyber risks through advanced encryption, zero trust architecture, and comprehensive threat detection.

Layer 2 encryption: Safeguarding data in transit

One common vulnerability in banks is the risk of data interception during transmission. NVIS AI employs Layer 2 encryption to secure data at the data link layer, ensuring that information exchanged between endpoints is encrypted and protected from prying eyes.

This approach prevents attackers from intercepting sensitive information, whether they attempt to do so through phishing schemes, DDoS attacks, or infostealers. Even if cybercriminals manage to infiltrate the network, Layer 2 encryption makes intercepted data unreadable and useless.

Zero Trust architecture: Halting unauthorized access

Account takeover, phishing, and vulnerability exploitation often succeed because banks operate on the assumption that internal traffic is inherently trustworthy. NVIS AI’s zero trust architecture challenges this notion by enforcing continuous verification of every access request.

Through rigorous authentication and authorization checks, NVIS AI ensures that every user and device must verify their identity each time they attempt to access network resources. This approach not only prevents unauthorized access from compromised accounts but also limits lateral movement within the network, mitigating the impact of potential breaches.

Static NVIS IPs: Making every endpoint a secure server

With NVIS AI’s static IP technology, every workstation within the bank's infrastructure operates like a secure server without the need for NAT, port forwarding, or third-party IP subscriptions. This reduces the attack surface, as endpoints are protected and invisible to external scanning and intrusion attempts. Consequently, attacks like botnets, DDoS, or vulnerability exploitation are significantly harder to execute.

Implementing a compliance-driven security framework

The financial sector is subject to stringent regulatory requirements that mandate specific cybersecurity controls to protect customer data. NVIS AI's security solutions are designed to align with these regulations, such as GDPR and PCI-DSS, ensuring that banks meet compliance standards while securing their sensitive information.

Conclusion

The financial sector remains one of the most targeted industries by cybercriminals. As cyberattacks on banks become increasingly sophisticated, financial institutions must implement comprehensive cybersecurity measures to protect their data, operations, and reputation. NVIS AI provides an integrated solution that addresses key threats through advanced encryption, zero trust architecture, static IP technology, blockchain security, and automated threat intelligence.

By adopting NVIS AI's proactive defense mechanisms, banks can build a robust security framework that not only counters current threats but also adapts to future risks, ensuring the highest level of protection for their customers and assets.

Ready to secure your bank’s future? Schedule a demo or contact our team of experts today.