Cybersecurity for UK Financial Services Firms
FCA-regulated firms face increasing scrutiny over IT security controls. AMVIA delivers managed cybersecurity aligned to FCA PS21/3 operational resilience requirements, DORA, and the practical needs of IFAs, wealth managers, and financial advisory businesses.
Cybersecurity Risk in UK Financial Services
Financial services firms remain among the highest-value targets for cybercriminals, given access to client funds and commercially sensitive data.
Regulated firms must report material operational incidents to the FCA within 72 hours of identification under PS21/3.
The FCA's largest cybersecurity-related enforcement action highlights the regulatory stakes for FS firms of all sizes.
FCA Operational Resilience & Cybersecurity Obligations
Under PS21/3 and the FCA's Operational Resilience policy, regulated firms must identify important business services, set impact tolerances, and demonstrate they can remain within tolerance during severe but plausible disruption. The FCA's SYSC 13 rules require firms to manage operational risk — including IT and cybersecurity risk — as part of their systems and controls. DORA (the Digital Operational Resilience Act) extends these requirements further for financial entities. AMVIA works with FCA-regulated firms to implement the technical controls required to meet these obligations, including managed SOC services, incident response planning, and compliance reporting.
Cybersecurity Services for Financial Firms
Managed cybersecurity designed for the regulatory environment and data sensitivity of UK financial services.
24/7 Security Operations Centre
Continuous threat monitoring with financial services-specific SIEM playbooks. FCA-ready incident documentation generated automatically for material incidents.
Privileged Access Management
Just-in-time privileged access with full audit trails across trading systems, client portals, and cloud infrastructure — supporting SYSC 13 audit logging requirements.
Data Loss Prevention
Microsoft Purview DLP policies prevent unauthorised exfiltration of client data via email, USB, or cloud storage, with automated policy enforcement.
Immutable Audit Logging
Tamper-proof log retention meeting FCA SYSC requirements. Long-term email and file activity archives accessible for regulatory investigations.
Incident Response & FCA Notification
Documented and tested incident response procedures with FCA notification decision trees. AMVIA manages the technical response while you manage stakeholder communications.
Compliance Reporting Dashboard
Monthly compliance dashboards covering patch status, MFA adoption, backup success rates, and security posture — ready for board and regulatory reporting.
FCA Cybersecurity Compliance Checklist
Key technical controls expected under FCA SYSC 13, PS21/3, and the FCA's cyber security guidance for smaller regulated firms.
Business continuity plan tested annually
Including IT disaster recovery — failover scenarios tested, not just documented. RTO and RPO defined for critical systems.
Material IT incidents reported within 72 hours
Documented notification procedure for FCA reporting — who makes the decision, what constitutes a material incident, and how it is reported.
Third-party IT supplier risk assessed
All IT and cloud vendors assessed under TPCRM — due diligence completed, contractual controls in place, and annual review scheduled.
Staff cyber awareness training current
Annual training and phishing simulations for all staff with access to client data or financial systems.
Penetration test completed within 12 months
By a CREST-accredited provider, covering internal and external attack surfaces. Findings tracked to remediation.
Cyber Essentials Plus certification held
Or equivalent higher-assurance certification — increasingly expected by institutional counterparties and professional indemnity insurers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Under PS21/3, FCA-regulated firms must identify their important business services, set impact tolerances, and demonstrate they can remain within those tolerances during severe but plausible disruption — including cyber incidents. Firms must also be able to notify the FCA within 72 hours of a material operational incident. AMVIA helps firms document resilience frameworks and implement the technical controls required.
The Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) applies to financial entities operating in the EU and their ICT third-party service providers, including UK firms with EU operations or EU clients. UK-only firms fall under FCA PS21/3 and PRA requirements, but DORA's controls — including ICT risk management, incident reporting, and third-party oversight — are highly aligned with UK expectations.
Cyber Essentials Plus is the independently-assessed tier of Cyber Essentials certification. It involves a technical audit of your security controls against the CE framework. For financial services firms, CE+ demonstrates to the FCA, institutional counterparties, and PI insurers that your baseline controls have been independently verified — reducing both regulatory and commercial risk.
FCA-regulated firms must assess whether an incident constitutes a material operational incident under PS21/3, and if so, notify the FCA within 72 hours. Internally, firms should have a documented incident response plan that identifies who leads the response, how systems are isolated, how data is preserved, and how stakeholders are communicated with. AMVIA provides both the technical response and the documentation needed for regulatory reporting.
The FCA expects regulated firms to test their technical controls through regular penetration testing, ideally by CREST-accredited providers. Tests should cover internal and external attack surfaces, including cloud services, remote access infrastructure, and any client-facing portals. Findings should be tracked to remediation, with evidence retained for regulatory review. Annual testing is the minimum expectation.
Book a Financial Services Cybersecurity Review
AMVIA's FS-specialist engineers will review your IT controls against FCA SYSC and PS21/3 requirements — and provide a clear gap analysis and remediation roadmap.
Related Resources
The Complete UK Cybersecurity Guide
Foundational cybersecurity controls applicable across all UK businesses, with financial services regulatory context throughout.
Cyber Essentials Certification
How Cyber Essentials Plus meets FCA expectations and supports operational resilience compliance.
Cyber Essentials vs Cyber Essentials Plus
Which certification level does the FCA expect, and what does each cover?
MDR vs EDR for Financial Services
Comparing detection and response options for FCA-regulated firms requiring 24/7 monitoring.
How Much Does Managed Cybersecurity Cost?
Transparent cost guidance for financial services firms considering managed SOC services.