FEDERAL FINANCIAL REGULATORS RELEASE INFORMATION
SECURITY BOOKLET,
FIRST IN A SERIES
The Federal Financial Institutions Examination
Council today issued revised guidance for examiners and financial
institutions to use in identifying information security risks and
evaluating the adequacy of controls and applicable risk management
practices of financial institutions.
The safety and soundness of the federal financial
industry and the privacy of customer information depend on the security
practices of banks, thrifts and credit unions. The Information Security
Booklet describes how an institution should protect and secure the
systems and facilities that process and maintain information. The
booklet calls for financial institutions and technology service
providers (TSPs) to maintain effective security programs, tailored
to the complexity of their operations.
Today's guidance is the first in a series of
updates to the 1996 FFIEC Information Systems (IS) Examination Handbook.
These updates will address significant changes in technology since
1996 and incorporate a risk-based examination approach.
The FFIEC currently plans to issue the updates
in separate booklets that will ultimately replace all chapters of
the 1996 Handbook and comprise the new FFIEC Information Technology
(IT) Examination Handbook. In addition to the booklet on information
security issued today, future booklets will address business continuity
planning, supervision of technology service providers, electronic
banking, IT audit, payment systems, outsourcing, IT management,
computer operations, and systems development and acquisition.
The FFIEC agencies plan to distribute these
booklets electronically to financial institutions and TSPs. The
documents will be available on the Internet through the FFIEC's
InfoBase application. InfoBase will include each booklet in Adobe
Acrobat PDF file format, as well as an online version with links
to various resource materials, and an orientation to the handbook
update process.
The electronic version of the Information Security
Booklet is available at www.ffiec.gov/guides.htm.
The FFIEC is composed of the five federal financial
regulators: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation, National Credit Union Administration,
the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Office of
Thrift Supervision.
Media Contacts:
OTS Chris Smith 202-906-6677
FRB Susan Stawick 202-452-3128
FDIC David Barr 202-898-6992
NCUA Cherie Umbel 703-518-6337
OCC Dean DeBuck 202-874-4876
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