Protecting Financial Advisors and Wealth Management Firms from Cyber Threats in 2026

Why Financial Management Advisors and Firms Are Such Attractive Cyber Crime Targets 

“Cyber criminals go where the payoff is high and financial advisors are like a gold mine of data,” says Jardine.  

Think about what flows through a wealth management business every day: from client identity data and tax files to banking information and money movement tied to time-sensitive requests.  

And the potential damage from having any one of those assets compromised is not only operational. “Imagine being a financial advisor having to send a notice to clients saying all their information is now available on the dark web. It’s a surefire way to harm an advisor’s or firm’s reputation,” Jardine says. 

Attack Surface and Supply Chain Threats Against Financial Advisors & Firms

Financial management advisors and their firms have always dealt with sensitive information, so why are their cyber risks bigger than ever?

Today’s businesses increasingly rely on ecosystems of cloud platforms, IoT devices and third party systems. That interconnectedness is efficient but it also creates exponential risk.  

One of the biggest new risks is a business’ growing attack surface that also extends across their entire supply chain, Jardine says.  

“Every internet-facing asset connected to a wealth management advisor or firm creates a ‘digital doorway’ for cyber attackers to exploit, including websites, VPNs, cloud services, remote access portals, shadow IT and even third-party vendors,” Jardine explains.  

Over 53% of Canadian businesses experienced a cyber event in the past 12 months, with 58% of these events linked to supply chain or third-party vendors.  

Even strong internal controls like traditional end-point protection don’t eliminate exposure if a third-party becomes the path of least resistance. 

Financial management advisors and their firms need robust attack surface management and dark web monitoring that protects their entire supply chain. 

Common Cyber Attacks Against Financial Advisors and Wealth Management Firms

Cyber attacks against financial and wealth managers don’t all look the same. Sometimes it’s loud and disruptive, like ransomware that locks up systems and brings business to a halt.  

Ransom demands in cyber incidents are often significant, frequently benchmarked at a percentage of an organization’s annual revenue. In some cases, initial demands can reach eight figures and, even when reduced through negotiation, remain well beyond what many organizations could realistically absorb.” explains Jardine 

Jardine tells of another case where an  advisor client processed a $20,000 withdrawal request only to learn the client never sent it. BOXX found the client’s email had been compromised via a phishing link and the request came from an email address that was just one letter off.

Beyond the immediate loss, these scams can trigger longer-term fallout too, including data theft, identity fraud and lawsuits. 

Whether it’s ransomware, malware, phishing, fraudulent fund transfers, email compromise or distributed denial-of-service disruptions, protecting financial management firms from rising cyber threats has never been more important. 

Practical Cyber & Digital Tips for Financial Management Firms

Lock down identity 

• Turn on MFA everywhere that matters most: email, CRM, file storage, admin portals. 
• Use strong, unique passwords with a password manager. Most common passwords can be cracked in less than a minute. 

Make transaction verification non-negotiable 

• AI-driven cyber fraud attempts increased 1,740% in North America in 2023. Treat urgent money-move requests as high risk and always verify by calling back directly.  
• Create a “no change by email” policy for banking updates, withdrawals and wire instructions. 

Review backup and retention policies 

• Back up critical systems regularly and test restores, with at least one isolated backup. 
• Set simple retention rules aligned to regulatory needs and standardize secure storage and sharing. 

Attack Surface Management 

• Today, attack surface vulnerabilities are responsible for over 80% of cyber security breaches. Use Attack Surface Management as an essential tool to help continuously identify, monitor and secure internal and external assets, and detect vulnerabilities before they’re exploited.

Supply chain hygiene 

• Use tools like ASM and dark web monitoring across the supply chain for early detection and intervention. 
• Require MFA and least-privilege access for vendors and remove stale access quarterly. 

Train wealth advisors on cyber security best practices 

• Train client-facing teams to spot and stop phishing, client/vendor impersonation and urgent requests.  
• Ensure everyone knows the Incident Response Plan, including clear rules for verification and data sharing.  

How Cyber Insurance and Security Keeps Financial Management Firms Safe 

Cyber insurance is most valuable when it helps businesses in two ways: reducing the odds of an incident by predicting and preventing them and making response and recovery faster when something happens. 

That’s why more financial management firms are looking beyond “cyber coverage only” and asking a practical question: What do we get before and during an incident, not just after a claim starts? 

“At BOXX, we believe prevention is always better than loss. Our BOXX Hackbusters® team provides 24/7 monitoring and containment, preventing over 80% of incidents before they ever become claims,” Jardine says.

What finance and wealth management advisors and firms should look for in a cyber insurance policy

1. Fast access to human experts: When an advisor’s inbox is compromised or a client request looks suspicious, speed matters. Look for a policy that includes access to breach experts, incident response and containment, and forensics and legal support.

2. Coverage that matches how advisors can get hit: In wealth management, the big exposure areas tend to include: 

• Cyber extortion and ransomware response. 
• Business interruption and extra expense. 
• Privacy liability, notification costs and Equifax credit monitoring. 
• Social engineering and funds transfer fraud.

3. Support for supply chain risk: If a cloud outage or supplier incident affects operations or data, clarify how the policy responds and how it will help  navigate the fallout. 

4. Embedded prevention tools: Leading cyber insurers combine proactive prevention services and tools with coverage for comprehensive protection. BOXX’s all-in-one solution includes always-on Cyberboxx® Assist services in eachpolicy, with tools like Attack Surface Management and Dark Web Monitoring to help spot exposures early so they can be addressed them before they become an incident. 

“Wealth management businesses and their advisors don’t have to face today’s cyber risks alone. BOXX is here to help,” Jardine says. 

Proactive Prevention Leads The Way 

Cyber risk is now a day-to-day reality of running a wealth management firm.  

AI is helping cyber criminals scale more convincing scams and as the digital ecosystem grows, so does the exposure across the vendors and tools a firm relies upon. This increases the odds of a successful incident that can disrupt operations, drive up response and claim costs, damage reputation and cost clients. 

Firms that stay ahead make prevention part of how they operate. They reduce exposure, put clear controls in place and work with an insurance partner that helps them predict, prevent, respond to and recover from today’s cyber threats.