US officials have recently issued a warning to banking institutions about potential cyber-attacks linked to the interbank messaging system. This statement came just two weeks after the FBI’s cautionary notice to US banks after the hacking of Bangladesh’s Central Bank (Bangladesh Bank).
FBI warned of a lethal cyber group that had already targeted numerous foreign banks. Hackers had managed to dash out as a staggering amount of $81m (#56m) from Bangladesh Bank’s account with the Federal Reserve at New York. They made use of the bank’s swift credentials to transfer money to their minds back at the Philippines. Swift is the system that banks use to exchange messages and transfer request. The hackers initially attempted to steal almost $1 bn, but this prevented when the majority of their application was rejected due to irregularities.
The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFPIEC) alerted the banks to step up specific security measures that could protect this messaging system from unauthorized entry. The alert stated that the perpetrators of the attack had exploited the vulnerabilities in the internal environment of the banks initiating illegal monetary transfers over an international payment system.