Russian Banking System Safe From Cyber-Threats — Central Bank Head

(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – December 28, 2016)

Russian Central Bank Head Elvira Nabiullina said that Russia’s banking system is protected against cyber-threats in an interview with the Rossiya 24 television channel.

“I should say that our banking system currently has an adequate level of protection against cyber threats,” she said.

Nabiullina also said the Central Bank has created a special center dedicated monitoring and responding to cyber-attacks and potential cyber-threats. The center exchanges information with banks, warns them about impending threats and suggests how to react to them.

She also stressed, however, that it was necessary to remain vigilant, as cyber-attackers are constantly refining their methods.

Earlier in December, the Federal Security Service (FSB) claimed to have thwarted a series of cyber-attacks on several Russian financial institutions. According to the FSB, the attacks came from abroad, specifically Western Europe.

A number of Russian banking websites came under a DDOS (Distributed Denial of Service) attack in November.