Cybersecurity in the Financial Sector

The New Reality of Cyber Threats in the Financial Sector

In 2025, the CSIRT KNF issued as many as 625 threat warnings, clearly demonstrating that the cybersecurity landscape in the financial sector is becoming increasingly complex and dynamic. In addition to direct attacks on financial institutions, threats targeting technology providers and IT service vendors are gaining significance, substantially increasing risk across the entire supply chain. As a result, a single incident can now affect not only one organization but also the stability of the entire market.

Therefore, effective protection requires an approach that goes beyond reactive measures—one that includes continuous threat monitoring, proactive risk management, and close collaboration and information sharing across the entire financial ecosystem.

Key Cyber Threats in the Financial Sector

Attackers in the financial sector exploit the complexity of the environment, vulnerabilities in the supply chain, and the growing role of AI. Effective protection requires a comprehensive approach that covers the entire ecosystem—from identities and systems to third-party vendors and service providers.

The Growing Scale and Complexity of Cyberattacks

Cyberattacks today are more targeted, opportunistic, automated, and harder to detect. They often combine multiple techniques simultaneously—such as phishing, malware, and identity compromise—significantly increasing their effectiveness.

Although many financial institutions have strong security controls in place, attackers frequently exploit the weakest link in the chain: less secure third-party vendors and service providers. By compromising these organizations, cybercriminals can gain access to the systems and data of their intended targets.

Complex IT Environments

Financial institutions operate in environments that combine legacy systems, modern applications, and API integrations with partners and fintech companies.

This high level of complexity makes it difficult to maintain full visibility and consistent access control mechanisms, increasing the risk of misconfigurations and unauthorized access to sensitive data.

The Use of AI in Cyberattacks

Artificial intelligence is transforming the way cyberattacks are carried out. Cybercriminals are leveraging AI to automate phishing campaigns, generate highly convincing messages, and create deepfakes used in financial fraud schemes.

AI also enables attackers to identify vulnerabilities more quickly and evade traditional detection mechanisms, significantly reducing the time required to plan and execute a successful attack.

Business Continuity Disruption

A cyberattack can result in the unavailability of banking systems, transaction platforms, or online services.

Disruptions to financial services have a direct impact on customers and can lead to significant operational losses, as well as systemic risks that may affect the broader financial market.

Cybersecurity Risks in the Supply Chain

The financial sector is heavily dependent on technology providers, IT service companies, software vendors, and integration partners. Every external connection increases the organization's attack surface.

Cybercriminals are increasingly exploiting less secure suppliers as entry points into the infrastructure of financial institutions, potentially leading to incidents that impact multiple organizations simultaneously.

The growing importance of third-party risk is also reflected in regulations such as Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA), which requires organizations to manage ICT risk across their entire supply chain. Among other obligations, DORA mandates the identification of critical suppliers, assessment of their security posture, continuous monitoring of risks associated with outsourced services, and strict control over partners' access to organizational systems and data.

Skills Shortages and Operational Pressure

Security teams within financial institutions often face an overwhelming volume of alerts while operating with limited resources.

The shortage of skilled cybersecurity professionals, combined with the growing number of threats, makes it increasingly difficult to detect, investigate, and respond to security incidents in a timely and effective manner.

Threats Related to Remote Access and APIs

The growth of digital banking, open banking, and API-driven services requires organizations to expose an increasing number of systems and services to external parties.

Improperly secured remote access solutions, APIs, or partner integrations can provide attackers with a pathway to gain unauthorized access to systems or customer data.

Identity and System Access Attacks

Identity has become one of the most common attack vectors. Cybercriminals are increasingly focusing on compromising user and administrator accounts by leveraging phishing campaigns, data breaches, and credential stuffing attacks.

Gaining access to a privileged account enables attackers to bypass traditional security controls and move laterally across the infrastructure without raising suspicion.

The Risk of Data Breaches and Loss of Customer Trust

Financial institutions process vast amounts of sensitive data, ranging from personal information to financial and transaction records.

A data breach can lead to serious regulatory consequences, financial losses, and a loss of customer trust—an asset that is fundamental to the success and stability of any organization in the financial sector.

Key Technologies and Processes Supporting IT Security in the Financial Sector

technologies

Identity and Access Management (IAM) and Privileged Access Management (PAM) solutions form the foundation of security in the financial sector, where identity has become one of the primary attack vectors.

These technologies enable centralized access management across systems, control and monitoring of privileged accounts, and the implementation of a Just-in-Time (JIT) access model.

By enforcing strong identity governance and privileged access controls, organizations can significantly reduce the risk of account compromise, insider abuse, and unauthorized access to critical systems, transaction platforms, and customer data.

The Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) model eliminates implicit trust and requires continuous verification of every access request, regardless of the user's location or the system being accessed.

It is particularly important in the context of remote work, where traditional VPN-based approaches often fail to provide an adequate level of security.

ZTNA helps reduce the risk of unauthorized access and limits lateral movement within the infrastructure, preventing attackers from expanding their reach after gaining an initial foothold.

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) and Extended Detection and Response (XDR) solutions continuously monitor activity across workstations, servers, and critical systems.

They detect malware, privilege escalation attempts, and unusual user behavior that may indicate malicious activity or a security breach.

As a result, EDR and XDR serve as a critical layer of defense against ransomware and other advanced cyber threats, enabling faster detection, investigation, and response to incidents.

Network Detection and Response (NDR) provides comprehensive visibility into network communications across both on-premises and cloud environments.

It enables the detection of anomalies, suspicious connections, and unauthorized traffic between systems, helping security teams identify threats that may bypass traditional security controls.

NDR is particularly valuable in complex multi-cloud environments and ecosystems with extensive partner integrations, where maintaining visibility and detecting lateral movement are critical to effective cyber defense.

Data Loss Prevention (DLP) solutions identify, classify, and protect sensitive information, including customer data, financial records, and transaction-related information.

They help prevent data leakage and unauthorized disclosure, which is critical for maintaining regulatory compliance and preserving customer trust in the financial sector.

API security solutions monitor and protect the interfaces used in digital banking, as well as integrations with fintech companies and external partners.

They help defend against threats such as:

Unauthorized access
API abuse and misuse
Data manipulation and tampering

API protection has become a critical component of security in open banking environments and broader digital ecosystems, ensuring the integrity, confidentiality, and availability of services and data.

DDoS attacks can disrupt the availability of online banking platforms, transaction systems, and digital services.

Anti-DDoS solutions analyze network traffic and filter malicious requests, helping ensure service availability and maintain the operational stability of financial institutions.

Web Application Firewall (WAF) solutions also play a critical role in protecting financial applications. They safeguard web applications and APIs against attempts to exploit vulnerabilities, including SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and session hijacking attacks.

In the financial sector, where online banking, mobile applications, and digital services are the primary channels for customer engagement, WAF solutions are an essential component of maintaining the security, availability, and resilience of digital services.

processes

Continuous monitoring of the IT environment, event analysis, and rapid incident response are essential for minimizing the impact of cyberattacks.

Modern Security Operations Centers (SOCs) leverage automation and advanced analytics to detect anomalies, correlate security events, and accelerate incident response, enabling organizations to identify and contain threats more effectively.

Financial institutions must be prepared not only to detect cyberattacks but also to effectively manage their consequences.

Key processes include:

Incident response procedures and playbooks
Business continuity and disaster recovery plans
Operational resilience testing

Together, these measures help ensure the availability of critical services and maintain operational stability, even in the event of a major security incident.

Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) provides actionable insights into current threats, attack campaigns, and the techniques used by cybercriminals.

The process includes:

Collecting and analyzing threat intelligence data
Identifying threat actors and their tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs)
Providing contextual information to security analysts

CTI enables organizations to better prepare for attacks targeting the financial sector and respond more effectively to emerging threat scenarios, improving both detection capabilities and overall cyber resilience.

Threat hunting is the proactive process of searching for hidden threats that have evaded traditional security controls and detection mechanisms.

It is based on the analysis of anomalies, the development of attack hypotheses, and a deep understanding of the latest tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) used by cybercriminals.

Threat hunting helps organizations identify advanced attacks, including those that leverage compromised identities, insider-like behavior, or legitimate system tools to avoid detection.

Detection engineering focuses on the design, testing, and continuous improvement of threat detection mechanisms and detection rules.

Key activities include:

Developing detection use cases
Mapping threats to frameworks such as MITRE ATT&CK
Testing and validating detection effectiveness

By continuously refining detection capabilities, organizations can identify emerging attack techniques more effectively, including those leveraging AI, compromised identities, APIs, or third-party access paths. This enables security teams to stay ahead of evolving threats and improve their overall detection and response readiness.

Regular access reviews, implementation of the principle of least privilege, and strict control over access to critical systems help reduce the risk of account compromise and misuse.

Key processes include:

Periodic access certification and review campaigns
Privileged account management
Implementation of Just-in-Time (JIT) and Zero Trust access models

Together, these measures strengthen identity security, minimize excessive privileges, and reduce the likelihood of unauthorized access to sensitive systems and data.

Financial institutions rely heavily on technology providers, IT service vendors, and business partners, many of whom have direct access to internal systems or connect through APIs. Each of these connections expands the attack surface, making it essential to adopt a comprehensive approach that addresses both third-party risk assessment and access control.

Key activities include:

Assessing the security posture of vendors before establishing a business relationship
Conducting regular audits and compliance reviews
Continuously monitoring third-party risk and external exposure
Controlling and restricting external access to systems and data
Granting permissions in accordance with the principle of least privilege
Monitoring the activities of vendors and integrated services

This approach helps reduce the risk of supply chain attacks and the exploitation of third parties as entry points into the organization. By strengthening vendor security and access governance, financial institutions can protect not only their own environments but also the broader financial ecosystem.

Regular vulnerability scanning, penetration testing, and system configuration assessments help organizations identify weaknesses before they can be exploited by attackers. Effective vulnerability management, however, goes beyond simply identifying vulnerabilities—it also requires timely remediation and proactive patch management to ensure systems remain secure and up to date.

This process should cover both internal systems and externally facing applications used by customers, partners, and third-party service providers.

As the adoption of AI continues to grow across the financial sector, organizations must establish effective controls over how these technologies are used and managed.

Key processes include:

Managing access to AI models and the data they process
Controlling the use of AI tools by employees and third-party providers
Identifying AI-related risks, including the use of unauthorized or unsanctioned AI tools (shadow AI)
Monitoring the activities of AI agents and non-human identities
Securing integrations with large language models (LLMs) and AI services

An increasing number of banks are also deploying proprietary AI-powered applications, such as chatbots, voicebots, customer assistants, and systems that automate business processes and customer interactions. These solutions often process sensitive financial data and integrate with transaction systems and backend platforms, making their security critical to business continuity, data protection, and organizational reputation.

Without appropriate controls, AI applications can introduce risks such as:

Leakage of sensitive data to AI models
Manipulation of chatbot responses
Abuse of automated business processes
Exploitation of AI as a new attack vector

AI governance and AI security practices enable organizations to adopt innovative technologies safely, minimizing additional attack surface while maintaining control over data, access privileges, and operational risk.

Financial data is among the most sensitive information processed by organizations and requires a high level of protection.

Key processes include:

Data classification
Access control and information governance
Monitoring of data flows and usage

These measures help reduce the risk of data breaches and unauthorized disclosure while supporting compliance with regulatory and industry requirements.

Third-Party Posture Management (TPPM) enables the continuous assessment and monitoring of supplier security posture and supply chain risk. The process includes analyzing the external exposure of partners, identifying vulnerabilities, monitoring data and credential leaks, evaluating implemented security controls, and overseeing vendor access to organizational systems.

TPPM solutions also provide ongoing visibility into changes in supplier risk levels and enable the rapid identification of incidents that may impact an organization's security or service continuity.

This is particularly important in the financial sector, where regulations such as Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) and NIS2 Directive require organizations to actively manage third-party risk and strengthen supply chain security.

SOC360 analysts

SOC360 is a team of forty highly qualified experts who analyze threats at their source, leveraging telemetry data from advanced EDR and NDR systems as well as other cybersecurity monitoring platforms. Our SOC service, enhanced with Managed Detection and Response (MDR), is based on a single-line model*, ensuring fast and effective incident response.

FAQs

Yes, the financial sector falls within the scope of the NIS2 Directive, as it has been recognized as a sector of critical importance to economic stability and the functioning of society. Organizations such as banks, payment service providers, and financial market operators are classified as essential entities, which means they are required to implement advanced cybersecurity risk management measures and report significant security incidents.

At the same time, within the financial sector, the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) takes precedence as a sector-specific regulation (lex specialis) in the areas of cybersecurity and ICT operational resilience. This means that wherever DORA provides detailed requirements, its provisions override the more general requirements of the NIS2 Directive.

In areas not explicitly covered by DORA, the broader NIS2 requirements remain applicable, including their implementation through national legislation such as Poland's National Cybersecurity System Act (KSC). As a result, financial institutions must ensure compliance with both regulatory frameworks, while giving priority to DORA where specific ICT resilience and cybersecurity obligations are defined.

Preparing for DORA in practice is not about implementing a single tool or simply checking items off a compliance checklist. Instead, it requires a structured and comprehensive approach to cybersecurity and ICT operational resilience across the organization.

The first step should be to understand the organization's current maturity level through a gap assessment. From there, efforts should focus on several key areas:

Identity and access management
Continuous monitoring and threat detection (e.g., SOC and threat hunting)
Incident response preparedness
Third-party risk management, as suppliers are increasingly targeted as entry points by attackers

Equally important is resilience testing—verifying whether the organization can effectively withstand and recover from a real-world crisis, rather than relying solely on documented procedures and policies.

In short, DORA requires organizations to move from a reactive to a proactive security model and to extend cybersecurity beyond their own systems. This includes protecting the entire ecosystem, encompassing supply chains, cloud environments, third-party providers, and emerging technologies such as AI.

Cybercriminals primarily use AI to increase both the scale and effectiveness of their attacks. Instead of manually crafting phishing campaigns, they can generate highly convincing and personalized messages at scale, tailored to specific individuals, business contexts, or even current events.

Deepfake-based attacks are also becoming more common. For example, attackers may impersonate an executive during a voice or video call in an attempt to authorize fraudulent transactions or convince employees to transfer funds.

AI also helps attackers identify vulnerabilities more quickly, automate credential stuffing attacks, and analyze potential ways to bypass security controls. In addition, AI can be used to enhance social engineering campaigns by gathering and processing large amounts of publicly available information about potential targets.

In practice, this means that modern cyberattacks are not only more sophisticated and convincing, but also faster to execute and significantly more difficult to detect using traditional security measures.

The risk of a cyberattack through a supplier or business partner is currently very high and continues to grow. In many cases, the supply chain has become the easiest entry point for attackers.

Rather than targeting a well-protected financial institution directly, cybercriminals often focus on weaker links in the ecosystem, such as IT service providers, system integrators, software vendors, or cloud service providers. If a partner has access to systems, sensitive data, or API integrations, a vulnerability on their side can quickly translate into risk for the financial institution—and potentially for multiple organizations at the same time.

In practice, this means that a financial institution's security is only as strong as its weakest supplier. As a result, third-party risk management and continuous monitoring of supplier security posture have become critical components of modern cybersecurity strategies. By actively assessing and monitoring supplier risks, organizations can reduce the likelihood of supply chain attacks and improve the resilience of the broader financial ecosystem.

In practice, monitoring a supplier's cybersecurity posture is not a one-time audit exercise. It requires continuous assessment of the supplier's risk level, both from an external perspective and in relation to the access they have to your systems and data.

Organizations typically use attack surface monitoring to identify vulnerabilities, exposed services, data breaches, and leaked credentials. They also conduct regular security assessments and verify certifications and compliance status. However, these measures represent only part of the overall picture.

Equally important is controlling what suppliers can access. This includes enforcing the principle of least privilege, implementing time-limited access, and maintaining full visibility into supplier activities—particularly when API integrations or remote access are involved.

Continuous behavioral monitoring and anomaly detection, often delivered through a Security Operations Center (SOC), are becoming increasingly important. In addition, organizations should establish clear contractual requirements that obligate suppliers to report security incidents promptly and cooperate during investigations.

A comprehensive approach combining continuous risk monitoring, access governance, activity monitoring, and incident reporting requirements helps reduce third-party risk and strengthens the security of the entire supply chain.

Yes, outsourcing a Security Operations Center (SOC) can be an excellent solution for a financial institution—provided that it is carefully planned and aligned with the organization's specific needs and requirements.

In practice, many organizations lack the resources necessary to build and maintain an in-house team operating 24/7 with expertise in areas such as threat hunting, detection engineering, and incident analysis. Outsourcing provides immediate access to experienced security analysts, mature operational processes, and advanced security technologies. This can significantly reduce threat detection and response times while lowering the costs associated with building and maintaining an internal SOC capability.

At the same time, it is essential for organizations to retain oversight of their security operations. A successful SOC outsourcing model requires close integration with internal processes, clear governance structures, and well-defined responsibilities between the organization and the service provider.

In the financial sector, regulatory considerations are equally important. Regulations such as Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) require organizations to maintain oversight of critical service providers and ensure that those providers can effectively support operations during security incidents and crisis situations.

When implemented correctly, a managed SOC can enhance security maturity, improve operational resilience, and help financial institutions meet both cybersecurity and regulatory requirements.

Cybersecurity in the Financial Sector

The New Reality of Cyber Threats in the Financial Sector

Key Cyber Threats in the Financial Sector

Key Technologies and Processes Supporting IT Security in the Financial Sector

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