(Bloomberg) -- Societe Generale SA is asking staff for extra vigilance in online communications, amid fears that Russia's war efforts could lead to a spike in cyber attacks.
The Paris-based bank's security and technical teams are very closely monitoring online attacks, according to a staff memo seen by Bloomberg News. Reminding its staff of the basic rules to avoid phishing, SocGen said that ransomware represents the number one risk of cyber attacks for the company.
“Societe Generale takes information security very seriously in order to protect customer data and its Information System,” the lender said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg News. The bank's “security and technical teams are always on alert for any evolving threats.”
Russian Cyber War Poses Threat to Insurers as Well as Ukraine
“No specific external cyber attack has yet been identified,” the bank said, declining to comment further on the memo.
Prior to the launch of Russia's military invasion of Ukraine, the European Central Bank had warned banks against increased cyber risk in case of worsening geopolitical tensions, without naming any particular country. Last month, several Ukrainian banks were targeted by cyber attacks.
SocGen has been particularly hit by an investor sell-off amid concerns over its exposure to Russia via local unit Rosbank, and its stock almost 40% since a multi-year high it touched just last month. Still, the bank's capital cushions could absorb a potential write-off of its local investment, according to Fitch Ratings.
The war has also led SocGen to wind down some dealings with Russia, amid concern that future sanctions could include energy or a total expulsion of Russia from the SWIFT system of international payments. At the onset of the war, the lender halted the financing of commodities trading flows with the country, Bloomberg reported.
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