All licensed financial institutions must comply with a new set of requirements by next year to raise cyber security standards and strengthen cyber resilience of the sector, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said on 6 August. 

A view of the Monetary Authority of Singapore's headquarters (Photo: Reuters)

Key elements in the existing MAS technology risk management guidelines will also be made compulsory, the authority added.

These requirements, which will come into effect on 6 August, 2020, include having robust security for IT systems, ensuring updates are applied to address system security flaws in a timely manner, and deploying security devices to restrict unauthorised network traffic.

Financial institutions should also implement measures to mitigate the risk of malware infection, secure the use of system accounts with special privileges to prevent unauthorised access and strengthen user authentication for critical systems as well as systems used to access customer information.

Payment service providers like e-wallet providers and firms dealing with cryptocurrencies will also have to follow the new rules.

The penalties for not complying with the new measures will depend on what is set out in each respective Act for breach of a notice, said the MAS. 

(Source: VNA)