NATO And Cyber

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association praised a decision by NATO to explicitly include major cyber attacks under the collective defense article of NATO's charter, meaning a cyber attack on one member state could be considered an attack on all, Inside Cybersecurity reports this morning:

"Cybersecurity is a top priority for the financial services industry, which is dedicating significant resources to protect the integrity of the financial markets and the millions of people who use financial services every day," SIFMA President and CEO Kenneth Bentsen said in a statement.

"We commend NATO for acknowledging the increasing threat that cyber attacks pose to the security and prosperity of its member nations and for taking action to enhance the collective defense effort," he said, noting SIFMA still believes cooperation between the public and private sectors to be the most effective way to mitigate cyber threats. "We hope NATO's action will encourage greater international cooperation on cybersecurity."

Inside Cybersecurity further reports:

"Cyber attacks can reach a threshold that threatens national and Euro-Atlantic prosperity, security, and stability," states NATO's declaration, issued at last week's summit in Wales. "Their impact could be as harmful to modern societies as a conventional attack. We affirm therefore that cyber defence is part of NATO's core task of collective defence."