JPMorgan warns of increased hacker threats

JPMorgan warns of increased hacker threats
The firm has seen an increase in hackers targeting its systems.
JAN 18, 2024

JPMorgan Chase & Co. has seen an increase in hackers attempting to infiltrate its systems as the Wall Street giant and its rivals continue to deal with a surge in global cybercrime, according to Mary Callahan Erdoes, who leads JPMorgan’s asset and wealth management division.

“The fraudsters get smarter, savvier, quicker, more devious, more mischievous,” Erdoes said in a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos. “It’s so hard and it’s going to become increasingly harder and that’s why staying one step ahead of it is really the job of each and everyone of us.”

After the panel, JPMorgan clarified Erdoes’s comments on the number of hackers attempting to infiltrate its systems every day.

“Ms. Erdoes was referring to observed activity collected from our technology assets, malicious or not. This activity is then processed by our monitoring infrastructure,” Joseph Evangelisti, a spokesman for JPMorgan, said in a statement. “Examples of activity can include user log ins like employee virtual desktops, and scanning activity, which are often highly automated and not targeted.”

With geopolitical tensions rising globally in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine almost two years ago, banks have been dealing with a surge in cyber incidents. More than 70% of bank leaders in a 2023 survey by KPMG said cyber crime and cyber insecurity was a pressing concern for their organization. 

JPMorgan now spends about $15 billion on technology every year as part of its attempts to bolster its cyber defenses, Erdoes said. That figure has been on the rise in recent years: JPMorgan previously said it spent about $14.3 billion on technology in 2022. 

Erdoes also said the company has nearly 62,000 technologists who are also helping to secure its systems. 

Copyright Bloomberg News

Latest News

A year after sale, Commonwealth Financial and LPL start cutting staff
A year after sale, Commonwealth Financial and LPL start cutting staff

Commonwealth Financial joins a number of firm that have recently cut jobs.

Pension funds sue Primoris, allege it hid solar cost overruns from investors
Pension funds sue Primoris, allege it hid solar cost overruns from investors

A slow drip of disclosures, an executive exit, and a stock that fell hard before the suit landed

Unpaid caregivers face steeper financial hurdles on path to retirement, EBRI finds
Unpaid caregivers face steeper financial hurdles on path to retirement, EBRI finds

New research finds unpaid caregivers are more likely to struggle with debt, lower savings and diminished retirement confidence than non-caregivers.

Volatility: Best and worst of times
Volatility: Best and worst of times

Large broker-dealers and registered investment advisors have, since 2020, been developing or sticking to strategies and tactics to combat the pain of intense, short-term market volatility

Want to win in the advisor wars? Then make sure you’re offering plenty of choices
Want to win in the advisor wars? Then make sure you’re offering plenty of choices

Centaurus Financial touts its independence as a key selling point at a time when many firms are being swallowed up.

SPONSORED Direct indexing webinar targets tax-loss harvesting amid market swings

Northern Trust’s Ken Lassner shows advisors how to convert volatility into after-tax portfolio gains

SPONSORED Who builds the income when the pension disappears?

Dan Biagini of American Equity says the steady decline of pensions, longer lifespans and a reset in interest rates are rewriting how advisors build retirement income