Insurers and banks have a high risk of becoming victims of cyber criminality when it comes to Digital ID Management
Insurers and banks have always been in the focus of cyber criminality, as they have sensitive data to protect. Consequently, they have implemented various security measures to ensure that their systems and data are protected. However, the existing measures are often insufficient when it comes to the management of digital identities: the past has shown that major cyber risks and resulting cyber attacks are often related to the Digital ID ecosystem.
Examples include social engineering attacks that aim to trick employees or customers to provide sensitive data such as login credentials or financial information to criminals, or malware and ransomware attacks where malicious software is used to gain unauthorized access to systems or data.
While the spectrum of cyber threats with severe consequences is vast, threatening unprecedented reputational and financial loss, insurers and banks often may not have an appropriate cybersecurity function and processes in place to face those Digital ID-related threats – putting their business continuity at high risk.
A significant challenge is also caused by the fact that insurers and banks historically have had the largest demand on IT capacity. This has resulted in the installation of high-performing legacy IT infrastructure that may now be considerably antiquated and therefore not optimal for modern ID Management approaches.
Digital ID Management enables insurers and banks to reduce risks drastically and react rapidly in case of a cyberattack
Digital ID Management is a major component of cybersecurity. It involves the use of digital identification technologies to authenticate and verify the identities of users accessing sensitive information and transactions. For this purpose, Digital ID Management ensures that only authorized users have access to sensitive data, thus reducing the risk of security breaches. This is achieved by implementing authentication and authorization procedures that verify user identities and control access to information, which is especially important when dealing with Privileged Access Management (PAM), e.g., for system administrators. In practical terms, this is accomplished through authentication methods, such as multi-factor authentication (e.g., push TAN apps).
With the growing transition towards cloud environments and the resulting arrival of zero trust approaches, Digital ID Management is more important than ever before, since it often is one of the last barriers. Thus, sophisticated combinations of AI-based detection and traditional Digital ID Management must be considered.
Appropriate technologies create a multi-layered defense against cyberattacks, making it much more difficult for attackers to breach the system and gain access to sensitive data. Another benefit is that Digital ID Management tools help monitor user activity and detect potentially malicious behavior early. This supports the identification of cyber breaches even before they occur. Ultimately, state-of-the-art Digital ID Management systems can be integrated with other cybersecurity tools such as prevention systems to automatically react in the case of breaches or attacks. The possibilities are multifaceted, and the risks can be drastically mitigated.
How to achieve an enhanced cybersecurity function through the integration of a comprehensive Digital ID Management
In order to establish a Digital ID Management that enables to enhance the current cybersecurity function, the following four steps should be taken:
- Conduct a comprehensive cybersecurity analysis and discover the current risks your organization faces and where the main vulnerabilities are.
- Define the Digital ID Management target functionalities to close your vulnerabilities and define how to integrate them with your existing cybersecurity function.
- Determine whether you have a supporting technology stack that has state-of-the-art security functionalities in place or whether you need to enhance your existing systems with a third-party solution.
- When launching Digital ID Programs, the transition time should be shortened in smart ways. Consider migrating the most frequently used IDs first, which can be identified by using complementary AI tools to analyse overall ID traffic flow and prioritise activity.
If you would like to assess your current cyber risks and cybersecurity function, define a target picture, or select a supporting technology stack that will build the foundation for effective cybersecurity, please get in touch with us to continue the conversation. We have the expertise to support you when it really matters.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
