Finance companies are at the heart of the UK economy, handling vast amounts of data and capital every second. In a sector where speed and accuracy are crucial, companies rely on powerful data systems to store, analyse and process information in real time. However, this reliance on advanced data infrastructure comes with significant cybersecurity risks that many financial institutions are failing to address.

Visualising the Threat: What the Map Shows

The map above, generated from real-world data using Shodan, highlights 200 publicly accessible systems associated with finance companies in London. Each point on the map represents a specific port carrying a service that finance companies often rely on that attackers can easily target.

The concentration of points in London’s financial districts is alarming. These are not hypothetical risks – they are live, accessible systems, often configured without adequate security measures.

Why These Exposures Are Dangerous

These exposed systems are typically high-performance data platforms used by finance companies for:

• Data aggregation and indexing: To quickly search through large volumes of transactional data.
• Real-time market analysis: Handling rapid financial data processing and decision-making.
• Log management and monitoring: Aggregating logs from trading platforms and financial applications.

However, despite the critical nature of these functions, many of these systems are:

• Accessible from the public internet, meaning anyone with basic tools can reach them.
• Lacking authentication, allowing unauthorised data access or manipulation.
• Unencrypted, sending data in plaintext, making it vulnerable to interception.

The Real World Impact of Exposed Financial Data

The consequences of these exposures are not theoretical. Attackers actively search for these misconfigured systems to:

• Steal financial records: Customer data, trading logs, or internal reports.
• Manipulate data: Altering records to cause market disruptions or financial losses.
• Ransom critical information: Encrypting databases and demanding payments to restore access.

Data leaks can lead to both significant financial damage and regulatory investigations.

The problem often comes down to default settings that are left unchanged or rapid deployments without sufficient security testing. Even as cybersecurity awareness increases, operational pressures and the need for fast data access sometimes lead to corners being cut.

Mitigating the Threat: Best Practices for Finance Companies

To address these risks, financial institutions must take the following steps:

1. Restrict public access: Ensure that internal data systems are not exposed to the internet.
2. Implement robust authentication: Require multi-factor authentication (MFA) and secure login methods.
3. Encrypt all data transfers: Use SSL/TLS to prevent data interception during transmission.
4. Harden server configurations: Disable default settings that expose data and enforce access control lists (ACLs).
5. Continuous monitoring: Use intrusion detection systems (IDS) and real-time monitoring to detect unauthorised access attempts.
6. Regular audits: Conduct security assessments to identify exposed services and verify secure configurations.

Securing the Financial Backbone

Financial companies need to strike a balance between high-speed data access and robust security practices. While efficient data processing is essential, security cannot be compromised in the process.

By taking proactive steps to secure data systems, financial institutions can protect their assets, their reputation, and most importantly – their clients. The stakes are too high to ignore the risks any longer.

If you’re concerned about your own data exposure, reach out for expert advice on how to secure your systems and protect your critical financial information.