Banking on automation: the future of cyber security for financial services Published 2 months ago For cyber criminals banks are where the money is. A successful attack on a bank offers multiple avenues for profit through extortion, theft, and fraud. Given that many financial services firms are now largely perimeter-less businesses in the cloud, the cyber criminal’s playing field has expanded further and faster than many IT security teams can adequately defend. Despite financial firms spending up to $3,000 per employee on cyber security to keep their networks protected, more often than not this fails. A recent study from Accenture and the Ponemon Institute “Unlocking the Value of Improved Cybersecurity Protection,” claims that the cost of cyberattacks is highest in the banking industry, reaching $18.3 million annually per company.