Assessing cyber security vulnerabilities and defense strategies in financial Institutions towards strengthened digital resilience

Abstract

As the financial sector in Zimbabwe continues to become increasingly digitalised, it has led to improved efficiency in the provision of financial services to customers and improved financial inclusion. However, the adependence on digital technologies within the sector has also exposed financial institutions to various forms of cyber threats. Assessing the vulnerabilities that financial institutions in Zimbabwe experience as a result of digitalisation and the defence mechanisms that exist to counter these threats will inform digital resilience within the financial institutions. The specific objectives of this study include identifying the cybersecurity vulnerabilities that affect financial institutions, assessing the cybersecurity defence mechanisms implemented by these institutions, and determining the effectiveness of these defence mechanisms in the strengthening of digital resilience within the financial institutions.A quantitative research approach was used for this study, with data collected from employees of selected financial institutions in the Harare Metropolitan Province of Zimbabwe. These financial institutions included CBZ Bank, ZB Bank, Microhub Financial Services, and Vail Microfinance. A census approach was used to access all the employees in these financial institutions, with a total of 53 employees surveyed. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data from the employees, and 50 questionnaires were successfully returned. The data was entered into the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Version 26) for analysis. Descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis were performed to analyse the data. The findings of the study indicated that the major cybersecurity vulnerabilities experienced by financial institutions in Zimbabwe include the following: technical vulnerabilities, phishing attacks, malware threats, insider threats, and artificial intelligence- driven threats. The financial institutions use preventive, detective, corrective, and deterrent controls in their cybersecurity defence mechanisms. However, multiple regression analysis of the data indicates that none of the individual 10 variables have a significant impact on the effectiveness of the cybersecurity defence mechanisms implemented by these financial institutions. Instead, the effectiveness of these cyber defences is a result of the interaction of variousfactors within the organisations. The findings indicate that strengthening the cybersecurity frameworks implemented by financial institutions, increasing the cybersecurity awareness of the employees of these organisations, and increasing the digital resilience of the technologies used by these institutions will significantly improve their digital resilience. Based on these findings, it is recommended that financial institutions in Zimbabwe increase their investments in cyber security technologies, increase the cybersecurity awareness training of their employees, improve their cybersecurity governance frameworks, and increase their compliance to digital and cyber security regulations.