FCA records 50% rise in serious cyber incidents at UK firms
News and information from the Advent IM team.
- by Olivia Lawlor-Blackburn
- Industry News
Cyber incidents reported to the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority in 2021 are up by over 50%, with a fifth involving ransom software.
In total, the FCA received 116 reports of material cyber security incidents in 2021, up from 76 in 2020.
According to the FCA, an incident may be material if it:
• results in a significant loss of data
• results in the unavailability or control of IT systems
• affects a large number of customers
• results in unauthorised access to information systems
The data, obtained from a Freedom of Information request from Picus Security, revealed that approximately one third of incident reports contained notifications where the confidentiality of company or personal data may have been compromised or breached. One in five of all breaches involved ransomware.
March was the busiest month for the FCA, with 21 cyber incidents reported, coinciding with the disclosure of critical vulnerabilities in Microsoft Exchange Server.
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