BOJ warns of cyber-attack vulnerability ahead of Olympic Games

TOKYO: Japan’s financial institutions must guard against cyber-attacks ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, with nearly 40% of banks and other firms experiencing attacks over the past three years, the Bank of Japan said on Friday.

The increasing threat of cyber-attacks has prodded the Bank of England and other central banks to take action to ensure that banks, insurers, and other financial firms minimise the impact of cyber-attacks or technology outages.

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In a BOJ survey conducted in September, nearly 40% of respondents said they had experienced cyber-attacks, and more than 10% had suffered disruptions to their business.

Over 70% believed the threat of cyber-attacks has increased since 2017 - the last time the BOJ conducted a similar survey - while nearly 60% said they have departments specialising in cyber incidents, the survey showed.

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Still, about 60% of the 402 financial institutions surveyed said they were not able to secure enough staff to oversee measures to deal with cyber-attacks.

“Progress in digital technology has led to a sharp increase in cyber-security risks for financial institutions,” the BOJ said in the survey.

“Cyber-attacks may increase ahead of the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games this year, which is a risk we must be vigilant to,” it said.

Japan will host the 2020 Olympics in July and August.