World’s Largest Bank Targeted by Cyber Attack

Cyber attack disrupts operations at the world’s largest bank
The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the world’s largest bank by deposits, experienced a cyberattack this week that resulted in disrupted US Treasury transactions and a need to use a USB stick to complete payments. The attack was described as a ransomware attack that affected many systems within the bank’s U.S. financial services unit.

As a result of the disruption, the bank reportedly had to resort to sending a messenger with a USB stick containing deal details to the affected parties. While the bank has confirmed that U.S. Treasury transactions executed on Wednesday were successfully confirmed, there were reports of liquidity being affected in the market.

Marcus Murray, founder of Swedish cybersecurity firm Truesec, stated that the ICBC hack serves as a wake-up call for large banks worldwide to strengthen their defenses against cyber threats.

The Chinese lender has not disclosed any information about the perpetrators of the cyberattack. However, it is reported that ransomware attacks have been on the rise, with payments for such attacks reaching $500 million as of the end of September, marking a 50 percent increase from the previous year, according to analytics firm Chainaliz. The incident at ICBC emphasizes the growing threat that cyberattacks pose to financial institutions and calls for enhanced cybersecurity measures across the industry.

 

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