Independent pen testing for 20 big financial institutions

A cyber security test carried out last year by the Bank of England (BoE), known as Waking Shark II, has uncovered a number of holes in how the finance industry reacts to an ongoing attack. It highlighted a lack of communication between banks, in particular.

The bank has reportedly responded by  outlining its plans to conduct pen testing, which will see 10 major UK banks take part.

Waking Shark II was regarded as practice for the wholesale banking industry, including major financial market frameworks and investment banks.

The Securities Industry Business Continuity Management Group organised the programme, which tested how the UK financial services structure would respond to an attack. Around 200 people participated from approximately 20 institutions, which included financial market firms, investment banks and a number of government agencies.

It is thought that the BoE is currently amid discussions about extending its original plans for the programme and arranging an ethical hacking pen test, drawing on real-life situations to ascertain how much preparation the 20 banks and other financial organisations have in place.

Reports have suggested that other financial institutions, including Lloyds and HSBC, are also under consideration to be a part of the test, which is likely to occur this autumn.

Financial organisations will always be under the radar when it comes to security tests at this level, but in light of recent events, businesses from all industries will no doubt be looking at tightening up their security procedures. This will likely lead to more pen testing jobs becoming available for professionals seeking employment in cyber security.