Not Just A Question Of Money: Cybersecurity And The CFO

Cybersecurity is a matter of concern for every company no matter its size and available resources. As cyber criminals become increasingly complex and challenging to identify, the financial sector is left vulnerable due to direct access to capital and personal identity information.

In 2013, US financial services companies lost an average $23.6 million from cybersecurity breaches, according to a Deloitte report. This number is 43.9 percent higher than in 2012, when the industry was ranked third on a list of industries that cyber criminals most targeted. Similarly, an Agari study from 2014 found that the payments industry, including credit-card and digital-wallet companies, saw a 23-fold increase in malicious email attacks against its customers between the second and fourth quarters of 2014.

Despite common knowledge of verifying and evaluating sources of information, nearly 95 percent of all cyber-attacks are carried out via email messages. In an attempt to acquire employee information such as usernames, passwords, and credit card details, cyber criminals trick employees into sharing sensitive information, leading to identity theft, money laundering and other crimes.

Even with a dynamic and continuously optimized cyber defense system, it takes only a single point of entry to gain access to all the information stored by a corporation. With so much at stake, the need for C-level tools and education that allow for increased security are crucial. While CFOs may not be entirely familiar with the technology around cybersecurity solutions, they understand the inner workings of the most targeted financial data and systems, leaving them the most qualified candidates to protect them.

Here are some ways CFOs can support the company’s cybersecurity policy and execution:

Education

A PwC study found that Cybercrime risk appears to be increasing – however, risk awareness can differ greatly depending on an individual’s role and function. The first step in understanding what these risks are is education. CFOs understand what is at stake if there is a financial breach, therefore it is essential that the C-suite and relevant managers receive training on assets that are subject to a breach. Understanding cybersecurity trends and threats as well as parlaying that knowledge to board members should become one of the CFO’s key roles.

For example, make sure individual employees across the organization understand what a phishing attack could look like, and educate them on what is considered to be sensitive information. With the right knowledge to inform their decision making, corporate directors will be aware of what is vulnerable and what cybersecurity risks to be aware of.

Strategy

Even though corporate directors are concerned and aware of cybersecurity threats, they often have no one to turn to when informed decisions need to be made. The best way to insure the financial health of the organization is to identity vulnerabilities in the data supply chain within the organization. CFOs have the opportunity to establish a formal task force to help implement the strategic objectives of the organization’s cybersecurity mission. By reaching out and creating a task force of leaders in IT, legal, and finance, awareness of cybersecurity practices can spread enterprise-wide.

Implementation

According to a survey conducted by Protiviti, IT security does not get a lot of time on C-suite agendas. However, CFOs should take it upon themselves to determine what the organization is invested in most heavily and if the current level of protection is appropriate to that area’s level of importance. With so much at stake, organizations should tackle security measures from the top down. It’s crucial for C-level executives to discuss what intellectual property, and potential loss thereof, would be severely detrimental to the organization. This way CFOs can optimize cybersecurity risk management and protect their organization in the best way possible.

In today’s digital economy, it is more important than ever to ensure that the right protection is in place at all levels of engagement. As a CFO, protecting financial data is critical in steering the company towards success. The cost of a cyber-attack, whether it’s financial or reputational, can be astounding.

For CFOs, information security must become a top priority in defending their organization’s future. And off course taking care of cyber security is just a piece of the puzzle and risk management processes have to be enhanced with risk resilience to anticipate the degree of uncertainty.

Financial Executive: http://bit.ly/1r07Cnf