As attack surfaces continue to expand amid raging geopolitical, economic and technocratic agendas, cybersecurity will need to be holistic in scope.
The fintech industry is experiencing rapid growth, with revenues expected to grow almost three times faster than traditional banking, financial services, and insurance firms by 2028.
However, along with this growth arises a pressing dilemma — an expanded attack surface and vulnerability to cyber threats.
This susceptibility stems from widespread application programming interface (API) integrations, adoption of cutting-edge technologies, and user-centric interfaces. This blend, fueled by cloud-based scalability, increasingly jeopardizes fintech firms. Embracing cloud tools for cost-efficient scalability inadvertently amplifies their exposure to cyber risks.
Moreover, as fintech firms grapple with scarcity of cyber talent and compliance hurdles, the pivotal question arises: How can they strengthen their defenses against a broad range of cyber threats?
Going holistic in cybersecurity
Although innovation drives fintech companies, trust forms the bedrock of their success. To ensure the safety of their data and operations, unified solutions for Attack Surface Risk Management (ASRM) and eXtended Detection and Response (XDR) can be used.
Hence, adopting a platform-based approach emerges as an ideal solution. To that extent, ASRM functions as a race engineer, providing a comprehensive view of the ‘track’ — the attack surface that has been expanded by the use of multifaceted technologies and cloud integrations.
- ASRM meticulously maps and identifies the potential vulnerabilities across the fintech ecosystem, proactively identifying weak spots and security gaps. This continuous monitoring and assessment help fortify defenses against diverse threats ranging from API vulnerabilities to misconfigurations within cloud services. Furthermore, with the integration of a zero-trust strategy, ASRM significantly reduces the attack surface, guarding against both malicious and inadvertent insider threats while ensuring compliance and robust data protection.
- Complementing ASRM, XDR serves as the vigilant lookout guarding against evolving cyber threats. It consolidates various security tools, correlating insights from multiple sources to detect and respond to sophisticated attacks swiftly. Its cross-domain visibility enables fintech enterprises to detect atypical behavior across cloud environments, such as unusual access patterns, unexpected downloads of sensitive information, patterns indicative of phishing campaigns, or social engineering attacks, and more.
Today, there are platforms that combine the capabilities of ASRM and XDR, delivering the agility and adaptability fintechs need in their diverse IT architectures.
Using a platform-based approach
By consolidating multiple security measures, a platform approach has the following benefits as it:
- liberates resources otherwise spent on managing disparate systems
- alleviates the impact of cyber talent scarcity.
- fuels operational scalability, allowing enterprises to redirect focus and investments towards growth initiatives.
- helps centralize security protocols and regulatory adherence by ensuring consistent implementation of standards (and reduction of vendor/tool spawl) across the ecosystem.
- minimizes human error but also quickly adapts to evolving compliance and threat intelligence scenarios.
- instils confidence among stakeholders, enhances reputation, and positions fintech companies attractively.
In the ever-evolving landscape of cyberattacks, a platform-based approach emerges as the cornerstone for fortifying the future of fintech firms and tech-centric organizations in general.
This strategic paradigm shift not only bolsters defenses against multifaceted threats, but also paves the path for sustainable growth.
