The U.S. financial services industry is on high alert for potential cyberattacks amid the ongoing U.S. war in Iran. Executives and analysts said that firms are stepping up monitoring threats, anticipating the rise in threats that may come up amid geopolitical conflict.
Cybersecurity has been a priority for the financial services industry critical U.S. infrastructure, including payments, clearing and settlement systems, as well as trading platforms and Treasury markets, making it a prominent target for cyberattacks according to industry data.
“The industry remains vigilant and ready to respond to cyber threats at all times, and especially when global cybersecurity risks are heightened,” said Todd Klessman, managing director for financial services cyber and technology at industry group SIFMA which runs an annual exercise to ensure financial firms can operate through significant cyber emergencies.
“We continue to monitor the current situation with a focus on operational resilience, which is foundational to the integrity and stability of the U.S. capital markets,” he added.
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Another top banking industry official also said lenders are very concerned about the risk of cyberattacks, which they see as likely.
Reuters reported on Monday that a U.S. intelligence assessment that revealed that Iran-aligned “hacktivists” could conduct low-level cyberattacks against U.S. networks, such as distributed denial-of-service attacks (DDoS), whereby hostile actors overwhelm a targeted server with a flood of internet traffic.
Credit rating agency Morningstar DBRS said on Tuesday the most significant risks to global banks and asset managers were likely to be indirect, including sustained higher oil prices and shocks to borrowers, but warned that cyber risks could also rise.
“Iran could increase its cyberattacks against Western entities, including banks,” the credit rating agency said.
U.S. investment bank Lazard’s geopolitical advisory team also this week flagged cyber risks, noting that Iran has demonstrated a willingness to deploy cyber capabilities against commercial targets, including financial systems.
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A 2025 report by the Financial Services Information Sharing and Analysis Center (FS-ISAC), an industry consortium, the financial services sector was the top target of DDoS attacks in 2024, with the Hamas-Israel and Russia-Ukraine wars fueling a surge in hacktivism.
Meanwhile, there have also been reports of U.S.-Israeli actors carrying out cyberattacks on Iranian websites and internet infrastructure. That has included attacks targeting multiple government-aligned Iranian news sites. Iran also faced an internet shutdown, according to data from independent internet watchdog NetBlocks posted on Tuesday, which showed connectivity at around 1% of ordinary levels.
NetBlocks has attributed the blackout to a “regime-imposed” nationwide internet shutdown, though the country’s government has not commented.
The conflict has also led to a spike in oil prices, and disruptions to flights and airports, showcasing the drastic effect war has on various industries.