The fintech industry is booming and is seeing an incredible period of growth. You might assume that all is well for the industry – but beyond the incredible rise of some of the most well-known fintech brands, there is an entire industry that may face challenges. In fact, the most important fact is that the industry is not taking cybersecurity seriously enough.

Unfortunately, the fintech industry is a tempting target for cybercriminals. The reasons for this are many, but a key one relates to the type and amount of information it collects from its customers and partners. If a fintech business becomes a victim of cybercrime, it can lead to stolen data that can be used for identity fraud or even sold to other criminals.

It is important for business owners to take a closer look at the cybersecurity they really need. But for those interested in or using fintech products and software applications, it is also important to know how to integrate those products in the most secure way.

In this article, I'll walk you through how cybersecurity affects fintech businesses and products, and the need to understand how businesses and individuals can use fintech software in a way that keeps them safe from cybercrime. 

Why Fintech Industry Should be Worried About Cybercrime

As the world is going digital, cyber crimes are on the rise. It should come as no surprise that such a large amount of crime has gone online. This rise in cybercrime is certainly troubling for businesses of all sizes.

However, from a fintech perspective, it is not the worst. Indeed, research by IBM has shown that financial services businesses are the most likely to fall victim to cyberattacks. This means that if a fintech business is not putting in the proper resources to protect itself from cybercrime, it can easily become a victim.

Fintech has always been a competitive space, but there is no doubt that the race for the best is getting fiercer with every year. As a first-to-market company, this can mean that your product could be vulnerable to cyber-security problems. Sooner or later, you will have to address them and find ways of ensuring that you can manage this problem in the long term.

How Cybercrime Impacts Fintech 

Cybercrime can have a huge impact on fintech businesses, and customers using financial software applications. The point to consider is that this will have an impact on the business, as well as may involve loss of capital, but this may require the business to shut down its operations for a period of time while it fixes the problem. Solves. Of course, that's before you take into account the damage to customers or users whose personal information could be stolen and then sold.

This can lead to further problems of reputational damage. Customers who suffer financially or simply lose data will lose faith in the fintech product, and this has an impact on customer confidence in general. If a business has been breached before, it's proof that it hasn't taken cybersecurity seriously in the past.

Why is Cybersecurity Important in the Fintech Industry?

Security is critical in the fintech industry, as fraudsters are targeting financial service providers. Credit cards, Venmo, and PayPal have all had time bombs attached to their accounts that have caused huge financial losses for businesses. Not only does the risk of attack affect startups, but it also represents a huge liability for banks that may be accused of failing to protect consumer information. Individuals who use online banking or services like Venmo are at high risk for fraud and identity theft. The safest option is to protect your own personal information from surveillance efforts; otherwise, you’re just walking around with expensive fish in a plastic bag in plain sight.

Integrating Products Safely

Too many startups provide products that integrate intricately with existing systems, or else address huge challenges. Issues like bad configuration and undiscovered software vulnerabilities can take a successful integration and turn it into a nightmare. Huh. Here are some tips on how to integrate fintech products with existing systems you already have that will work in your fintech business.

Working With Specialists

Firstly, one of the key ways to ensure that fintech products integrate smoothly with your existing systems is to seek help from experts. Relying only on your IT team to integrate a complex system that they are not familiar with may not completely solve problems. Get in touch with experienced professionals who have the expertise to do the kind of integration you want to implement.

Overcoming the First-to-Market Problem

There is no doubt that the fintech industry is growing at an exponential rate. This means we are seeing more and more companies develop products that are highly disruptive to existing industries. With new technologies always coming onto the market, there is also never enough time to patch all the issues that they introduce. Overcoming this challenge means really being sure of your brand-new product’s mission and why you believe it will succeed in the market. This can lead to products that are under-resourced from a cybersecurity perspective, as there simply isn’t enough time to patch all the issues.

Test and Test Again

In order to assess the security of your fintech product, it is important that you integrate it into your cybersecurity framework and have penetration testing done. This can help ensure that the product is secure and meet your needs. Penetration testing is the process of simulating an attack on your system or network. If you want to ensure that your new fintech product is secure and reliable, then you should integrate penetration testing into the process. We can work with partners close to our customers to meet their specific needs and get the best results.

There are many benefits to incorporating pen testing into your business. Not only does it help you to effectively assess the security of your product, but it also protects you from any vulnerabilities that may come out a few months down the line. By working with a cybersecurity expert who has a number of years of experience, they will be able to identify new vulnerabilities without giving any preconceived opinions.

Do you want to develop a secure and compliant financial technology platform for a reasonable price? Contact us to learn more about our FinTech security solutions and software development services!