Cyber-attacks, a real threat to the French financial sector

According to a study by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), 27 792 cyber-attacks targeted the financial sector out of 115 415 happening between 2002 and 2019. The administrative sector and support services were affected by 22 062 attacks.

The financial sector recorded an average loss of 1.7 million USD per attack. The losses sustained by that sector are lower than those recorded by others such as: Wholesale trade (8 million USD on average per attack), transport and storage (16.8 million USD) and ICT (5.5 million USD).

For the record, on 17 July 2020, the Mutuelles du Mans Assurance (MMA), members of the Covéa group, were hacked. The attack (ransom demand) led to a major misfunctioning of the mma.fr website.