Cyber threats are everywhere, and the entities that aren’t ready for it are in jeopardy. Banks, financial institutions, and government infrastructure systems are highly susceptible to security breaches. Experts say India remains highly vulnerable to cyber attacks on its critical infrastructure. One of India‘s most significant data breaches affected nearly 3.2 million debit cards in 2016 and allowed hackers to extract money to the tune of Rs 1.3 crore from bank accounts via debit cards. A malware injection caused this breach. The malware, being sophisticated in its design, captured both the debit card number and PIN of customers who used their cards at the affected ATMs.
Globally, the number of breaches against banks and financial services groups have been rising steadily, with drastic technology-led changes taking over the financial services industry. Such unfortunate incidents force millions of customers, who expect safekeeping of their cash and personal data, to spend sleepless nights stressing about the implications if their banks fell prey to cyber attacks. So it makes a lot of sense to invest in solutions that use best in class technologies that are up-to-date with the expanding cyber threat landscape. With the right solutions, these entities can reduce costs, avoid bad publicity and better protect against online threats.
Given the global nature of cyber threats and a constantly evolving underworld of hackers, an international approach should be sought to fight cyber crime in India. An effective approach to cybersecurity would thus entail collaboration between governments and private sector entities from around the globe. Israel, a global epicenter for cyber defense technologies and solutions, has signed strategic pacts with India on co
operation in cybersecurity. This opens doors for innovation hubs like The Floor Cyber, a joint venture between The Floor and Cyber Security Group, based in Tel Aviv and Hong Kong, which is working with the world’s largest banks to shape and protect the banks of the future. Focusing on opening new opportunities for Israeli cyber companies in Asia, particularly with financial institutions and government, one of The Floor Cyber’s top priorities is to bridge the gap between the Israeli cyber expertise and the all-important Asian market. Defending India‘s critical infrastructure like electricity grids and government databases and financial institutions such as insurance firms, stock exchanges, trading platforms, etc., from hackers is critical in this digital age.
It’s time for India to get smart about cybersecurity, and tapping into one of the world’s largest pools of talent and know-how in cybersecurity, will secure the banking and government infrastructure systems against cyber attacks. Additionally, make India‘s swift digital transition cyber safe as well.