ECB urges banks to quickly prepare for AI-assisted cyberattacks
ECB's warning and the threat of AI-driven cyberattacks
Urgency for euro area banks to act
FRANKFURT, May 13 (Reuters) - European Central Bank board member Frank Elderson on Wednesday urged banks in the euro area to quickly prepare for potential cyberattacks launched with the help of Anthropic's Mythos AI model or similar tools.
Elderson, who is vice chair of the ECB's bank supervision arm, said in an interview in ECB publication Supervision Newsletter that euro area banks' lack of access to Mythos added to the severity of the issue.
Critical need for proactive measures
"Lack of access is not an excuse for inaction. On the contrary, it makes it even more critical that banks step up and act now," he said.
Comparisons with U.S. and global banks
Reuters reported this week that large U.S. banks, which have been granted early access to Mythos, are rushing to fix scores of data system weaknesses flagged by the tool.
Mythos is viewed by cybersecurity experts as a significant challenge to the banking industry and its data technology systems, prompting a series of warnings from regulators and policymakers.
Future risks from advanced AI models
Elderson warned that banks need to brace for future AI models that enable even more aggressive cyberattacks.
"We need to be able to deal with ever more capable future models that could be released in relatively quick succession," he said.
ECB's response and regulatory actions
ECB's defensive strategies
The central bank's president, Christine Lagarde, said earlier this month the ECB is studying defences against Mythos-guided cyberattacks, while being at a disadvantage for lack of access to the model.
Supervisory measures
Reuters reported in April that ECB supervisors would ask the banks that they monitor about their preparedness for the new source of risk.
Global access disparities
The global gap in access to the AI model could widen for Europe, with Japan's three largest banks likely to be cleared to start work with Mythos in about two weeks.
Call to address vulnerabilities
Elderson said banks - and the contractors they rely on - need to quickly fix even minor vulnerabilities that have typically been patched only in longer software update cycles.
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger and Reinhard Becker, Editing by Linda Pasquini and Hugh Lawson)
