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Monetary Authority of Singapore, Association of Banks In Singapore
 The Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Association of Banks in Singapore have announced that they are setting up AI-Driven Cyber and Technology Risk Taskforce. 

“ACT” is an “industry-wide initiative to strengthen collective cyber and technology resilience in response to the emerging risks posed by frontier artificial intelligence (AI) models,” MAS said in a statement. 

“Frontier AI is increasing the severity, scale and sophistication of cyber threats. The financial sector must respond with urgency and through strong collaboration,”  Vincent Loy, assistant managing director (technology) and chief technology officer, MAS, said. 

"The Taskforce marks a “significant step in the financial sector’s concerted response to AI-driven threats,” MAS said. 

The frontier
Concerns about AI and its cybersecurity implications are, given the nature of technology, global. In the UK, for example, the National Cyber Security Centre has written that “the most advanced tools, often referred to as frontier AI, already make it easier, faster and cheaper for attackers to discover and exploit weaknesses. This means that tasks which once required specialist skills – such as writing exploit code, understanding system architecture or using attack tools – can increasingly be automated using AI. This lowers the barrier to entry for sophisticated cyber-attacks and allows attackers to operate at greater speed and scale.”

Changing the threat
MAS said “frontier” AI technology is reshaping the cyber threat landscape. 

“Its ability to rapidly identify, exploit vulnerabilities and automate attacks at scale is a serious cause for concern for the financial sector. Against this backdrop, coordinated sector-wide action is critical to strengthening the financial sector's resilience against the threat,” the regulator said. 

The Taskforce includes members from MAS, ABS, Singapore’s major domestic banks such as DBS, OCBC, UOB, and Singapore Exchange (SGX), Network for Electronic Transfers (NETS), and Banking Computer Services (BCS).

MAS said the organisation will focus on industry collaboration; improving capabilities, and guidance development.