Fergie's Tech Blog

Banks: Losses From Computer Intrusions Up in 2007

Brian Krebs writes on Security Fix:

U.S. financial institutions reported a sizable increase last year in the number of computer intrusions that led to online bank account takeovers and stolen funds, according to data obtained by Security Fix. The data also suggest such incidents are becoming far more costly for banks, businesses and consumers alike.

The unusually detailed information comes from a non-public report assembled by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the federal entity that oversees and insures more than 9,000 U.S. financial institutions. The statistics were gathered as part of a routine quarterly survey called the Technology Incident Report, which examines so-called suspicious activity reports (SARs). In this case, SARs that were filed in the 2nd Quarter of 2007. SARs are federally mandated write-ups that banks are required to file anytime they spot a suspicious or fraudulent transaction that amounts to $5,000 or more.

A copy of the report was provided by a trusted source who asked to remain anonymous. An FDIC spokesperson could not be immediately reached for comment.

posted by Fergie @ 2/21/2008 11:05:00 AM