Cybersecurity summit highlights identity-based fraud as key concern for banks, financial institutions

The banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) industry remains at the forefront of issues surrounding cybersecurity in the Philippines, particularly identity-based fraud, based on a recent summit Trend Micro hosted for free for executives, professionals, and consultants from the financial services industry.

The 2022 BFSI Cybersecurity Summit brought together panellists from the information technology and banking and financial services sectors in the Philippines and Southeast Asia to instigate increased awareness and action from BFSI companies who are more vulnerable than ever due to their accelerated digital shift triggered by the pandemic.

Trend Micro executives and featured cybersecurity thought leaders from the Philippines and the Southeast Asia region debate and discuss various topics under the cybersecurity with focus on the BFSI sector.

According to the global cybersecurity leader, 2021 has seen more threat actors prey on digital-first organizations, with the banking industry being the second most hit in terms of ransomware attacks. With a bigger digital attack surface – applications, website, cloud infrastructure, on-premises servers, and operational technology – Trend Micro champions the need for companies to be more vigilant in discovering, assessing, and mitigating cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities.

“Banks and other financial services companies are going heavy on digital. With consumers mainly benefiting from this shift, the number one threat for the industry is identity theft and abuse. Most of the fraud happening in the space is based on stealing someone’s identity such as personal information and passwords, so banks should heavily invest in security models which focus on identity security and identity-based fraud detection capabilities,” shared Trend Micro Vice President for Southeast Asia Nilesh Jain.

Industry leaders in the panel sessions talked about key topics along their area of expertise: Fintech Philippines Association Executive Director Amor Maclang went through a series of solutions such as automation and machine learning, amplified data processing, and end-to-end solutions to keep identities secure; BFSI SEA Regional Principal Architect Sapna Sumbly shared the state of cyberattacks and how an integrated platform like Trend Micro One can help address and predict vulnerabilities for quicker action; while Amazon Web Services Solutions Architect Damselle Acosta discussed the evolution of the cloud and the steps being taken to comply with BFSI security standards to continuously address the industry’s dynamic needs.

East West Bank Chief Information Security & Data Protection Officer Manuel Joey Regala mapped out the current cyber attacks affecting BFSI; Department of Information and Communications Technology Chief Information Officer Corps Director June Vincent Gaudan also talked about efforts of the Government Digital Transformation Bureau to show how the Philippine government evolves with the private sector in digital transformation; while 1Kosmos Chief Operating Officer for Asia Pacfic Siddharth Gandi took attendees through the timeline of how identity authentication has and continues to develop.

The event was participated in by over a hundred attendees connected to the BFSI sector, including C-level executives handling information technology and information security. Trend Micro shares that more industry-specific events will be held soon, in a bid to continue ramping up education and mitigation in various companies so they can handle cyberattacks with information and solutions relevant to each industry.