Thebanks hold about $1.2 trillion worth of deposits from households,are owed more than $1.8 trillion in investment and home mortgage debt and the finance sector is the biggest contributor to Australia’s economy.
While the RBA acknowledges significant resources can be provided for cyber defence by large companies like banks,and they are typically seen as among the most secure,the higher number of cyber attacks is still considered a major source of concern.
“[Given] the very large number of attacks,it seems almost inevitable that at some point the defences of a significant financial institution will be breached,” the review says.
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“Whether such an attack could result in systemic financial instability will depend not only on the part of the financial institution or system impacted and potential network effects,but also the cyber resilience of that institution and financial system.
“In Australia and internationally,financial institutions and regulators are focusing on strengthening the resiliency of individual institutions and the financial system to a substantial cyber attack.”
The bank says cyber attacks and malfunctions are considered a key concern by the financial businesses themselves,regulators and governments. With digital platforms becoming more critical to economies and increasing in complexity,this risk has increased.