‘Effectively Defend’

“We are concerned that the industry may not have the capabilities that we would like to effectively defend against this newer form of potential attack, the capability that we would like to stop such an attack once commenced from spreading to other financial institutions, or the capability we would like of effectively recovering if an initial attack is followed by waves of follow-on attacks,” the document says.

While noting that the coordination between industry and government on cyber threats has improved in recent years, a joint council would produce a more focused response, according to Sifma.

The government-industry group would develop plans for “much quicker, near real-time” dissemination of information from agencies to the private sector and ways to “actively defend the industry” if preparations for a cyber attack are discovered in advance. Sifma is also seeking “pre-discussed and mutually understood protocols” for the industry to request government help during and after an attack.

Electric Grid

In addition, Sifma wants greater protection for the U.S. electricity grid, which it says is “vulnerable to physical destruction of transformers and other equipment in a small number of undefended substations.”

“The core problem is that if transformers and critical equipment were destroyed at these sites, it could take months to build the replacement equipment,” Sifma wrote.

The Senate Intelligence Committee plans today to take up a bipartisan bill -- sponsored by Senators Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat, and Saxby Chambliss, a Georgia Republican - - aimed at improving private-sector cyber-defenses. The bill includes rules insulating banks from liability arising from sharing of information for cybersecurity, addressing a point financial institutions have raised in the past.

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