Taiwan's state banks to undergo enhanced regulatory inspection after cyber attacks
Taiwan's state-run banks will be ordered to review the information-security services of their overseas branches by the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) after a cyber attack against First Commercial Bank. In a meeting with the heads of the affected national banks scheduled this month, the FSC is also expected to demand the banks to conduct inspections to ensure all branches meet both Taiwanese regulations and the regulations of their host nations.

FSC to demand banks review security systems

By Lauly Li / Staff reporter





The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) is to demand today that the nation’s state-run banks review the information security systems of their overseas branches in the wake of a heist that targeted First Commercial Bank’s (第一銀行) automated teller machines.

State-run banks will also have to inspect the operations of their overseas branches to ensure that they comply with Taiwanese regulations and their host nations, the Chinese-language Apple Daily newspaper quoted FSC Vice Chairman Kuei Hsien-nung (桂先農) as saying on Saturday.

The newspaper said that the Ministry of Finance plans to convene a meeting with the representatives of state-run lenders before the end of this month.

The ministry will also require banks to report on the progress of their information security upgrades, the newspaper said.

The commission and the ministry’s moves came after the Investigation Bureau discovered that two First Commercial Bank branches in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and Phnom Penh, Cambodia, might have been hacked, in addition to its London branch.

The Southeast Asian branches reported abnormal Internet connections with the London branch, the newspaper said, citing sources familiar with the investigation.

The bureau said it suspects that an international fraud ring might have infiltrated the bank’s systems to set up a connection between London and Taiwan via the two Southeast Asian branches.

A team of information security experts from the bureau are analyzing two hard drives taken from the two Southeastern Asian branches, the bureau said.

First Commercial Bank confirmed the report, but said it found no losses at the two Southeastern Asian branches, as the bank does not have ATMs there.

The bank said it will improve the security firewalls at the two branches.