Banking Network Safe

The Central Bank of Iran has denied any case of hacking in the domestic banking sector, saying that the banking network is strong enough to protect depositors’ money against cyber threats.

“No harm is done, in spite of attempts to breach the security of the banking network … Security against cyber attack is significantly high compared to other countries,” Nasser Hakimi, the head of Central Bank of Iran’s Information Technology Department, was quoted as saying by ISNA on Friday.

Hakimi noted that the use of encrypted transactions has significantly raised the security of Iranian banking system.

Recently, rumors about hacking customers’ accounts of banks cause people to start worrying about their money.

Almost a month ago, a rumor had circulated in the media that an Iranian bank had been attacked by hackers. It was mentioned that a considerable amount of money was withdrawn from many accounts. This prompted customers to rush to check their bank accounts and, in some cases, show reluctance in retaining their money in that bank.

Hakimi noted that only a few disruptions had occurred in the banking network’s software.  However, “this event made banks to pay more attention to secure their system,” he said.

CBI has focused on reinforcing infrastructure needed for easing transactions and improving interactions with other bodies, especially with respect to online transactions.

Linking the banking network to the online database of the National Organization of Civil Registration and using the database for identifying customers is among CBI’s achievements in this regard.

A new platform, called Kashf (meaning “detection” in Persian), has also been launched, to boost the security of documents in the banking sector, mainly by digitalizing them.

CBI launched “Peyvand” in late September, in line with plans to raise the security of mobile transactions. The platform was an alternative for low-security Unstructured Supplementary Service Data payment method.

All banks are reportedly required to install anti-skimmer modules on their automatic teller machines.