Bank of Thailand cyber order tells banks to boost defences

The Bank of Thailand cyber alert issued on Monday, 9 November, orders every bank in the country to tighten its defences after IT failures and cyberattacks hit financial institutions abroad. The central bank says Thai banking services have not been affected so far, Khaosod English and The Nation reported.

On Monday morning the central bank called in the chief information officers of all financial institutions, together with the Thailand Banking Sector Computer Emergency Response Team (TB-CERT) and the Thai Bankers' Association (TBA). The meeting looked at prevention and response measures, threat monitoring, information sharing and whether current preparations match the level of risk.

What the Bank of Thailand cyber order requires

Suwannee Jatsadasak, the central bank's deputy governor for financial institutions stability, said the bank was closely following the overseas disruptions but did not name the institutions involved, according to Thaiger. Thairath English linked the move to a system outage at a Japanese bank.

Under the instructions, banks must:

• keep IT and cyber security systems up to the required standards;
• keep running emergency drills for critical payment systems under their business continuity plans;
• share threat information and assess risks with the central bank and TB-CERT;
• update software and technology components promptly to close known weaknesses, The Nation reported.

The Nation said the central bank sent direct instructions to every bank's chief executive and chief information officer, and arranged a video call with the IT chiefs to make sure the rules are followed. TB-CERT will act as the central coordinator for Thai lenders, working directly with the regulator.

Governor says no need to panic

Governor Vitai Ratanakorn told The Standard that attacks on Thailand had increased over the past one to two weeks, in line with a global rise, but that the country had so far fended them off, Thaiger reported. He said there was no need for people to panic, rush to withdraw cash or stock up on food.

The central bank says mobile banking apps, transfers and payments, which residents and tourists use every day, are working normally.

Government steps up monitoring

The banking order is part of a wider response. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Sunday that cyber threats had spread to Asian countries and that he had told all relevant agencies to prepare. On Monday, National Security Council secretary-general Gen Chaipruak Doungprapat said monitoring of important systems had been stepped up after attacks in several European countries, but described this as a precaution rather than a sign of a serious attack on Thailand.

The council will work with the National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA) and the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society, and ask private companies to review their safeguards. Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Ekniti Nitithanprapas said Thailand is preparing to strengthen protection for financial institutions and other critical infrastructure, The Nation reported.

How banks say they are protected

Payong Srivanich, president of Krungthai Bank and chairman of the TBA, said banks apply strict access rules to the many outside partners connected to their systems, and run tools that watch for suspicious behaviour. A concern raised by officials is that weak links at third-party partners could open a path into banks' core systems, so the Finance Ministry and NCSA have widened monitoring to all sectors.

Siam Commercial Bank said it runs a security operations centre that tracks threats around the clock, noting that attacks are becoming more complex through the use of AI, Thai PBS World reported.

The crypto sector has already felt the impact of recent attacks. Binance TH temporarily suspended crypto deposits and withdrawals for a security review after the global Binance exchange was hit by a cyberattack on 29 October, which Binance estimated at about US$6.3 billion.

The order follows other recent central bank moves, including new rules on buy now, pay later and gold. Home users also face risks from infected devices, such as the Android TV box botnet uncovered recently.

More detail is available from The Nation.

Image: Bang Khun Phrom Palace, home of the Bank of Thailand Museum beside the central bank head office in Bangkok, which issued the Bank of Thailand cyber order. Photo by David McKelvey via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.