Finance1 min read

Are banks cyber-ready? RBI seeks proof of compliance amid rising attacks

By · Via Times of India · Published by Everything Blog

In short

The Reserve Bank of India has mandated that financial institutions submit verification of their cybersecurity safeguards, focusing heavily on API vulnerabilities and risks linked to artificial intelligence. This intervention follows a breach that compromised loan disbursal channels and caused approximately $2 million in losses across accounts held at ICICI Bank, as well as an SBI customer data leak. National agencies are intervening aggressively to bolster institutional defenses against automated credential theft. In direct response, the national agency CERT-In carried out specialized cybersecurity training for 300 officials across more than 55 financial organizations.

Key points

  • The Reserve Bank of India is requiring lenders to verify compliance and inspect vulnerabi…: The Reserve Bank of India is requiring lenders to verify compliance and inspect vulnerabilities within third-party API connections.
  • Regulators and security agencies are prioritizing defenses against artificial intelligenc…: Regulators and security agencies are prioritizing defenses against artificial intelligence tools that illicitly harvest API credentials to steal funds.
  • Financial institutions face escalating exposure as digital partnerships between tradition…: Financial institutions face escalating exposure as digital partnerships between traditional banks, non-bank lenders, and fintech entities expand attack surfaces.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

NEW DELHI: The

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has asked banks to step up their cybersecurity measures and demonstrate compliance with existing rules amid a rise in attacks on financial institutions. According to three people familiar with the matter cited by Reuters, the central bank also asked banks to check their application programming interfaces (APIs) for security gaps. These software links connect banks with non-bank lenders and fintech companies, making them a key area of concern, the sources said.

The RBI has also sought information on how banks are preparing for risks associated with artificial intelligence (AI), as hackers increasingly use sophisticated tools to target financial infrastructure globally. Such attacks threaten both customer information and funds.

One of the sources, a person aware of regulatory thinking, said hackers consider smaller lenders, non-bank lenders and their third-party service providers to be "softer targets".

Although the RBI has already laid down directives for banks to manage cybersecurity risks, their implementation remains inadequate, said a second source, a consultant working with top banks. The regulator is now pressing banks to ensure stronger implementation…

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