Adding a new weapon to their cyber-security arsenal, major U.S. banks next month will start using software that will allow them to share information from multiple sources to protect against attacks.
The Dec. 2 launch of the Soltra Edge program — named for a network of beacons in medieval Europe that warned of a coming invasion — is intended to counter the ever-growing threat of cyber crime. Banks including JPMorgan Chase, U.S. Bancorp, PNC Financial Services, and Wells Fargo have all been the subject of recent attacks from hackers.
The breach at JPMorgan exposed the information of 76 million households.
“Defending against today’s cyber threats and attacks often takes more than any one organization, it takes an industry working together,” Kelly King, CEO of banking company BB&T, told The Hill. “We see Soltra Edge as a pivotal part of our community defense efforts.”
Soltra has been developed by the Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center, an organization focused on sharing critical cyber-security threat information worldwide, and The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation, which provides post-trading financial services.
More than 125 FS-ISAC members and representatives from government entities and the private sector contributed to the requirements, architecture and design of the software.
Soltra CEO Mark Clancy noted in a recent news release that most cyber threat information is currently provided manually to users from various, unconnected industry sources. As a result, it can take firms an average of seven hours to evaluate each threat.
With Soltra, Clancy said, “one organization’s incident becomes everyone’s defense. The solution will enable clients to send, receive, and store cyber-security threat intelligence in a streamlined and automated format, enabling these firms to deploy safeguards against a potential cyber attack.”
According to Bidness Etc, the software will be initially used by only 45 companies to collect and disseminate information regarding potential and actual threats, malicious computer codes, and other attacks, using high-speed techniques that could prevent simultaneous attacks on multiple organizations.
Source: The Hill