Cyberattacks on Financial Domain Increasing at Rapid Pace: RBI

The financial sector has reported over 20,000 cyberintrusions and digital attacks, which resulted in losses amounting to US$ 20 billion over the last 20 years.

With increasing digitalisation of financial services, the recurring intensity of cyberattacks has dominated financial stability concerns. The disruptions range from security bypasses and information disclosure to denial of services.

The number of publicly reported cyberattacks has been rising globally at an alarming pace, with the share of attacks in the financial domain increasing at a rapid pace (Chart 1.24 a). Ransomware crypto payments, business email compromises and cost of data breaches surged to a new high during 2023.

The financial sector has reported over 20,000 cyber intrusions and digital attacks, which resulted in losses amounting to US$ 20 billion over the last 20 years. Furthermore, cyberattacks are found to swell during periods of political and economic uncertainty such as geopolitical tensions, with disruptive consequences.