• Home
  • Education
  • News and Resources
  • Advocacy
  • Associate Members
  • Contact
  • Click to open the search input field Click to open the search input field Search
  • Menu Menu
News
News, Products, Resources

Executive Letter: Protecting Your Bank from a Cyberattack

Network of lines and dots marked with numbers and locks

By Rose Oswald Poels

Cyberattacks are becoming an increasingly alarming trend and it is vital that bankers in Wisconsin remain vigilant in safeguarding their institutions and the personal financial information of their customers. In 2022, global cyberattacks increased by 38% when compared to the year prior, notes a study conducted by Check Point Research. These attacks, which target both individuals and businesses worldwide, include phishing, ransomware, breaches, and vulnerability exploitation. Each year, cybercrime costs the U.S. economy billions of dollars.

Despite this, there are many ways in which banks are able to mitigate these risks if an attack occurs.

Continually monitoring, updating, and testing your systems are all key to ensuring that your people and environments are not vulnerable. In an ever-changing digital and banking world, it may be difficult to know what areas need to be addressed, but it does not have to be. As always, WBA and its subsidiaries — FIPCO and Midwest Bankers Insurance Services (MBIS) — offer many different resources for banks to help educate your employees, protect your systems, and partner with you during a cyber event.

To proactively identify vulnerabilities of critical aspects of business operation, FIPCO offers an IT Audit & Security service. This service, which includes various tests, audits, and resources, keeps your institution one step ahead to mitigate high-risk areas before it is too late.

Right behind robust firewalls, up-to-date antivirus software, and other initiatives to mitigate cyberthreats, are your employees. Ensuring all team members feel empowered to assist in cyber risk reduction efforts should be a significant aspect of an institution’s risk mitigation strategy. Annually, WBA offers a number of security and IT-focused educational opportunities, a best practices library featuring an extensive list of security and financial crimes resources, as well as a technology and operations peer group to help in facilitating discussion and idea sharing.

Ensuring that all team members are set up with strong, unique passwords may also be the difference between a secure organization and a vulnerable one. These passwords, according to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), should be more than 12 characters long and include mixed casing and numbers. Multifactor Authentication (MFA) is also strongly recommended for bank leaders and administrators, if not every member of the team.

Having comprehensive insurance coverage is also crucial in the event of an attack. MBIS offers an extensive list of insurance coverages, including cyber liability. This policy is designed to protect directors, officers, employees, and entities from losses arising out of electronic theft of customer information, including cyber extortion, forensic expense, security breach notification, e-commerce activity, and electronic publishing. The insurance carriers for cyber liability policies also provide extensive resources that MBIS recommends be immediately engaged in the event of any cyberattack, including phishing incidents and ransomware attacks. Additionally, FIPCO’s Loan Processing Central service provides a resource you can retain ahead of time to immediately step in if a bank experiences a disaster, including a cyberattack, or an unplanned employee absence, to help continue the processing of your loan documentation.

Whether your bank is recovering from a cyber incident or mitigating the chances of one, our team is here to ensure your bank is well-prepared and equipped to navigate the complex and stressful landscape of cybersecurity challenges. If you are interested in learning more about the protections WBA can help you implement at your bank, please contact Rob Foxx (FIPCO) at rfoxx@fipco.com or Jeff Otteson (MBIS) at jeffo@mbisllc.com.

Print 🖨
October 11, 2023/by Hannah Flanders
Tags: Cybersecurity, Executive Letter, Technology
Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on X
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share on Pinterest
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Share on Vk
  • Share on Reddit
  • Share by Mail
https://www.wisbank.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Cybersecurity.jpg 562 1000 Hannah Flanders https://www.wisbank.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Wisconsin-Bankers-Association-logo.svg Hannah Flanders2023-10-11 14:16:592023-10-11 14:16:59Executive Letter: Protecting Your Bank from a Cyberattack
You might also like
Association Update: WBA Associate Members Support Bankers Across Wisconsin
Row of digital locks with glowing lock in middle Ensuring the Safety and Security of Wisconsin Communities
2022 Forecast Looks Good, But Bankers Must Act
Executive Letter: Reaching New Heights Through Advocacy
Bright lightbulb in the middle of dim ones Community Banks Leveraging Technology
Executive Letter: Banking Wins and Risks in “One Big Beautiful Bill”
Executive Letter: Regulatory Advocacy in Action
Executive Letter: WBA Municipal Borrowing Form Sets Accommodate New 20-Year Term
Search Search

Categories

  • Advocacy
  • Community
  • Compliance
  • Credit Unions
  • Education
  • Member News
  • News
  • Products
  • Resources
  • Uncategorized

Recent Posts

  • WBA Ag Section Board Met With DATCP Secretary Romanski
  • Farmers & Merchants Union Bank’s Gregory J. LeCaptain Honored by WBA Upon His Retirement
  • Forward Bank Announces Promotions Within Board Leadership
  • 2025 GSB Banker Advisory Board Scholarship Winner Announced
  • PremierBank’s Silvia Donday-Selenske Honored With YWCA Rock County Women of Distinction Award

Archives

  • June 2025
  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • November 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • June 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • January 2018
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • August 2016
Wisconsin Bankers Association logo
  • About
  • Community
  • Subsidiaries
  • Staff

questions@wisbank.com

608-441-1200

4721 S Biltmore Ln.
Madison, WI 53718

Get our Newsletter!
Subscribe

© 2025 Wisconsin Bankers Association. All rights reserved. | Website Design by Bizzy Bizzy
Link to: Davidson Announces Retirement from GSB–WI Link to: Davidson Announces Retirement from GSB–WI Davidson Announces Retirement from GSB–WI Link to: Developing Your Passions Link to: Developing Your Passions BOLT Winter Leadership SummitDeveloping Your Passions
Scroll to top Scroll to top Scroll to top

This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies.

OKLearn more×

Cookie and Privacy Settings



How we use cookies

We may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website.

Click on the different category headings to find out more. You can also change some of your preferences. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer.

Essential Website Cookies

These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features.

Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.

We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.

We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.

Other external services

We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.

Google Webfont Settings:

Google Map Settings:

Google reCaptcha Settings:

Vimeo and Youtube video embeds:

Privacy Policy

You can read about our cookies and privacy settings in detail on our Privacy Policy Page.

Terms of Use
Accept settingsHide notification only

Subscribe

* indicates required








Membership