Banks Fear Swift Will Be Next Russian Cyberattack Target

The cyber specialists of the big banks have set an alert as concerns brew amongst the big banks over Swift's vulnerability to Russian cyberattacks, the Financial Times reports.

The attacks ended, kicking seven of the country's lenders off the global payments messaging system. Swift plays a crucial role in global banking, facilitating trillions of dollars worth of daily transactions.

VTB, Russia's leading bank, and Promsvyazbank, which finances Russia's war machine, were among the lenders removed from Swift as part of the West's sanctions campaign against Moscow in response to its Ukraine invasion.

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Bank cyber security specialists see an escalating threat to Swift being a pinch point in the global financial network if more of Russia's lenders leave the system.

Russia's cyberattacks, which have targeted only Ukrainian government departments and infrastructure, have gradually increased the intensity of their attacks.

"Swift takes security very seriously, and we have a strong control environment in place for physical and cyber security," it added. "Like banks, market infrastructures and other financial institutions, we continuously monitor the threat landscape and adapt responses accordingly."

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