From: PaymentLawAdvisor
By Sean B. Hoar
Why are banks often tempting targets for criminals and terrorists alike? Thomas Curry, the head of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), recently reminded us: “…because that’s where the money is.” But what most worries the Comptroller is not a modern-day Bonnie & Clyde or John Dillinger attacking banks from without, but rather scofflaws, “hacktivists,” terrorists and foreign regimes exploiting vulnerabilities in the financial industry’s cybersecurity and striking from within.
Over the last few months, Mr. Curry has taken to the speaking circuit, venturing from the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Government Conference last April to the New England Council in May to raise the question of how vulnerable the nation’s financial sector is to cyber-attack. Mr. Curry noted that while consumers are rightfully concerned about the security of the financial tools they use on a daily basis—from credit card readers at the mall to Internet bill pay and online banking—many do not consider “what goes on behind the scenes” to process these transactions. “Yet the impact of a cyber-attack on those systems could be even more disruptive than a data leak at a large retail store,” Mr. Curry told the CES. “It’s one thing to worry about whether someone is making charges on your credit card . . . . It’s quite another to worry about whether the accounts that hold your life savings are secure.”
Leave a Reply