Financial Advisors
Cybersecurity for Financial Advisors
Financial advisors and RIAs are prime targets for cybercriminals seeking client assets and sensitive financial data. SEC and FINRA require robust cybersecurity programs, and clients expect their wealth to be protected.
By The Numbers
$5.9M
average cost of financial services data breach
Source: IBM
74%
of RIAs experienced phishing attacks
Source: Aite-Novarica
$43B
lost to investment fraud annually
Source: FBI
Top Threats
- • Account takeover targeting client portfolios
- • Business email compromise for fraudulent transfers
- • Ransomware attacks on client data
- • Impersonation scams targeting clients
- • Insider threats from departing advisors
How Attacks Happen
- • Phishing emails impersonating custodians or clients
- • Compromised email accounts for wire fraud
- • Weak authentication on portfolio systems
- • Social engineering targeting support staff
- • Compromised personal devices accessing client data
Compliance Requirements
- • SEC Regulation S-P (Privacy of Consumer Financial Information)
- • SEC Regulation S-ID (Identity Theft Red Flags)
- • FINRA cybersecurity requirements
- • State securities regulations
- • Custodian security requirements
Is your business exposed?
Security Checklist
- 1.
Enable MFA on all systems with client data
- 2.
Implement verbal verification for all wire transfers
- 3.
Encrypt all client communications and files
- 4.
Train staff on SEC cybersecurity requirements
- 5.
Document incident response procedures
Related Industries
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