Strengthening Cybersecurity Automation in the Financial Sector Against Rising Threats

Chris Jacob in Insurance Edge writes that the World Economic Forum’s Global Cybersecurity Outlook 2025 warns of escalating cyber threats. The financial sector is a prime target. Financial institutions suffer some of the highest data breach costs, highlighting the urgent need for enhanced cybersecurity strategies. One key approach is cybersecurity automation to allow Security Operations Center teams to focus on more complex threats.

Financial services organizations are relatively advanced in cybersecurity automation, having moved beyond initial skepticism. The latest ThreatQuotient research indicates that 87% of financial institutions recognize automation’s importance, primarily for incident response, phishing analysis, and threat hunting.

However, as cyber threats grow more sophisticated, automation alone is not enough. Governments are enacting stricter regulations, like the EU’s Digital Operational Resilience Act, which mandates threat intelligence sharing to improve industry-wide cybersecurity awareness and response.

Threat intelligence sharing is a powerful way to enhance cybersecurity defenses. While financial institutions mostly share intelligence with direct partners and suppliers (59%) and within their organizations (48%), broader collaboration is necessary.

Cybercriminals already engage in knowledge-sharing via Cybercrime-as-a-Service, underscoring the need for organizations to follow suit. Additionally, AI presents both a risk and a solution; cybercriminals leverage AI tools to refine attacks, but AI-driven automation can enhance threat detection and incident response.

Law firms and legal departments that handle sensitive financial data should prioritize cybersecurity automation and intelligence-sharing practices. Strengthening supply chain security and leveraging AI for defense are critical.