While there hasn't been an increase in fraud and risk incidents from extensive remote working arrangements adopted by financial institutions amid the COVID-19 pandemic, new risks could emerge.
Financial institutions have generally not observed any significant increase in operational, fraud and cyber risks incidents because of remote working in 2020 compared to the year before, the Monetary Association of Singapore (MAS) and Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) said on Tuesday in a white paper.
The paper, «Risk Management and Operational Resilience in a Remote Working Environment» highlights possible risks to financial institutions in the areas of operations, technology and information security, fraud and staff misconduct, and legal and regulatory risks. It also examines the impact on people and culture that may be brought about by remote working.
Evolving Risks
MAS and ABS warned that given that large-scale ongoing remote working is a relatively recent development, the associated risks may only emerge over time.
«The forms that remote working will take, and the resultant risks, will also continue to evolve,» the paper said.
Preparation Important
«The operational resilience of our financial institutions during this period reflects the soundness of their business continuity management plans. It also underscores the importance of regular tests through internal drills and industry-wide exercises jointly organised by the MAS and the financial industry,» Ong Chong Tee, MAS deputy managing director (financial supervision), said in a statement.
The paper highlighted a number of remote working risks for FIs to consider and monitor closely so as to take pre-emptive steps to mitigate them.
