Financial institutions struggling to fend-off escalating security threats

The majority of global financial institutions have had an external attack on their information technology systems within the last year and many of these breaches resulted in financial loss, according to Deloitte's 2004 Global Security Survey. But even with security attacks on the rise, the largest number of respondents (some 25 percent) reported flat security budget growth. The survey, which acts a global benchmark for the state of security in the financial sector, consisted of interviews with senior security officers from the world's top 100 global financial institutions.

According to the survey, the vast majority (83 percent) of respondents acknowledged that their systems had been compromised in the past year, compared to only 39 percent in 2002. Of this group, 40 percent stated that the breaches had resulted in financial loss to their organisation.

"Financial institutions, particularly security officers, are facing greater challenges than ever," says Adel Melek, global leader of Deloitte's IT Risk Management & Security Services, Global Financial Services Industry. "They are fighting an on-going battle to overcome evolving security threats and to comply with an increasingly stringent regulatory environment but, at the same time, resources have stagnated."

The survey also finds that companies are sliding backwards when it comes to the use of security technologies. While more than 70 percent of respondents perceived viruses and worms as the greatest threat to their systems in the next 12 months, only 87 percent of respondents had fully deployed anti-virus measures. This result is down from 96 percent in 2003.

On the upside, the survey reveals some significant advancements and trends in the right direction. Financial institutions show improvement in complying with regulations, as two-thirds (67 percent) of respondents indicated they have a program for managing privacy (compared to 56 percent last year). In addition, the majority (69 percent) felt that senior management is committed to security projects needed to address regulatory requirements.

"Today's IT professionals are under pressure to balance the fine-line between openness and exposure while meeting stakeholder demands," says Melek. "They are hard-pressed to facilitate growth and profitably, while managing the costs required to maintain sufficient security levels," says Melek.

Additional key findings of the survey:
- While the majority of respondents (59 percent) indicated that security is a key part of their solution, only 10 percent of respondents reported that their general management perceives security as a business enabler.
- While 91 percent of respondents indicated they have a comprehensive IT disaster recovery plan in place, only half (51 percent) of respondents took into account personnel within their business continuity plans.
- One third (32 percent) of respondents felt that security technologies acquired by their organisations were not being utilised effectively.
- Only one quarter (26 percent) of respondents felt that their strategic and security technology initiatives were well aligned.
- Identity management and vulnerability management are the two most common technologies that financial services are piloting or intend to deploy over the coming 18 months.

www.deloitte.com/gfsi

•Date: 18th May 2004 •Region: N.America/World •Type: Article •Topic: BC stats
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