ING: Preparing Cybersecurity for What Comes Next

ING’s Debbie Janeczek outlined how the future of cybersecurity will be defined by convergence: geopolitical instability, rapidly evolving threat actors, and transformative technologies like AI and quantum computing all arriving at once. Banks are not simply managing today’s risks; they are preparing for a threat landscape that is more precise, more targeted, and more sophisticated than anything the industry has previously faced.

Janeczek explained that over the past two years, geopolitical tensions have dramatically reshaped cyber risk. Threat actors — whether criminal organisations or state-linked groups — now operate with far greater precision. Attacks are more customised, more strategic, and more capable of bypassing traditional defences. Meanwhile, AI is amplifying both sides of the cyber battle. Defensive teams are using AI to detect anomalies, accelerate triage, and strengthen real-time monitoring, but attackers are also leveraging AI to move faster, adapt quickly, and automate exploitation.

Quantum computing adds a further layer of complexity. While still emerging, quantum represents a future threat to cryptography, meaning banks must strategise now to ensure their systems remain secure when the technology matures. This makes cyber threat intelligence more important than ever. ING’s teams continuously scan the horizon for early warning signals — studying incidents at other organisations, analysing new attack patterns, and anticipating which threats may become mainstream. The goal is agility: building a defence posture that evolves as fast as the adversaries.

Janeczek also emphasised that this new landscape demands new skill sets. Traditional cyber roles — SOC analysts, threat hunters, incident responders — remain crucial, but banks now require AI specialists, quantum-aware security experts, and red-team professionals who can simulate how AI-powered attackers might behave. Finding and training this talent is a priority, as the industry is competing for a limited pool of next-generation cybersecurity professionals.

Governance, too, is undergoing a transformation. With regulators sharpening their focus on AI, cloud, and emerging risks, banks must build strong governance frameworks that anticipate future rules rather than reacting to them. That means strengthening AI governance, cloud security governance, and long-term oversight mechanisms that ensure resilience as technology evolves.

For ING, preparing for the future of cybersecurity means accepting a simple truth: threats will continue to accelerate, diversify, and challenge assumptions. The winners will be the organisations that invest early — in intelligence, technology, skills, and governance — to remain secure in a world where the only constant is change.

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