Threat actors targeting the banking and finance industry

Threat actors targeting the banking and finance industry typically have a range of motivations, including financial gain, espionage, and disruption. Here are the key focuses of these actors:

1. Financial Theft and Fraud

  • Motivation: Direct monetary gain.
  • Techniques:
    • Phishing and Spear Phishing: Harvesting customer credentials or employee access.
    • Credential Skimming: ATM skimmers and point-of-sale (POS) malware.
    • Account Takeover (ATO): Using stolen credentials to drain accounts or commit fraud.
    • Business Email Compromise (BEC): Deceiving employees to approve fraudulent transactions.

2. Ransomware Attacks

  • Motivation: Extortion for ransom payments.
  • Techniques:
    • Encrypting critical data and systems, paralyzing operations.
    • Double extortion: Threatening to leak sensitive customer data.
    • Targeting backups to ensure ransom payment.

3. Insider Threats

  • Motivation: Malicious or inadvertent actions by employees.
  • Techniques:
    • Misuse of privileged access to steal data or transfer funds.
    • Collusion with external cybercriminals.
    • Mistakes leading to data breaches (e.g., phishing clicks or poor cybersecurity hygiene).

4. Supply Chain Attacks

  • Motivation: Exploiting third-party vulnerabilities to compromise banks indirectly.
  • Techniques:
    • Targeting fintech partners or vendors.
    • Injecting malware into software updates or services.
    • Exploiting cloud misconfigurations.

5. Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs)

  • Motivation: Espionage or geopolitical disruption.
  • Techniques:
    • Nation-state actors infiltrating systems for sensitive data.
    • Long-term infiltration with undetected lateral movement.
    • Zero-day vulnerabilities and sophisticated exploits.

6. Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) Attacks

  • Motivation: Disruption of operations or diversion for other attacks.
  • Techniques:
    • Overwhelming online banking portals or financial services.
    • Using botnets to flood servers and degrade performance.

7. Cryptojacking

  • Motivation: Using banking systems to mine cryptocurrencies.
  • Techniques:
    • Injecting malware to hijack computing resources.
    • Targeting internal servers, cloud systems, or customer devices.

8. Data Breaches and Theft

  • Motivation: Stealing personally identifiable information (PII) for resale or identity theft.
  • Techniques:
    • Exploiting vulnerabilities in customer databases.
    • Unprotected APIs or insecure mobile banking apps.
    • Targeting backups for sensitive data.

9. Emerging Threats (AI and Blockchain Exploits)

  • Motivation: Capitalizing on emerging technologies.
  • Techniques:
    • AI-powered phishing or fraud attempts.
    • Exploiting blockchain vulnerabilities in cryptocurrency transactions or smart contracts.
    • Deepfakes for BEC or identity theft.

Notable Threat Actor Groups

  1. FIN7 (Carbanak Group): Specialized in ATM attacks and card fraud.
  2. Lazarus Group: North Korean APT targeting cryptocurrency and financial institutions.
  3. Cobalt Group: Focused on ATM jackpotting and SWIFT system attacks.
  4. TA505: Known for large-scale phishing campaigns and ransomware targeting financial organizations.

Mitigation Strategies

  • Zero Trust Architecture: Limiting lateral movement and access to critical systems.
  • Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Reducing credential compromise risks.
  • Threat Intelligence Sharing: Collaborating with industry groups (e.g., FS-ISAC).
  • Continuous Monitoring: Detecting anomalous behavior in real-time.
  • Employee Training: Addressing phishing and social engineering awareness.