As cyber threat landscape evolves, ANZ and 2degrees talk up the benefits of working with an unnamed NZ tech company

ANZ New Zealand says it has expanded a pilot test that has reduced card phishing cases hitting its customers by 39% in two months to incorporate a range of other companies.

The bank says it's working with a NZ technology company it won't name for security reasons, using its technology to disrupt malicious websites.

The pilot, run with 2degrees, now also includes Kiwibank, TSB, One NZ, Spark and Trade Me, says Alan Thomsen, ANZ NZ's Head of Customer Protection.

"The aim is to detect, validate, block and disrupt malicious domains within the first hour of a webpage going live," says Thomsen.

"We want to block those sites before our customers might view them and be put at risk of being scammed."

"The companies involved in this collaboration have already disrupted over five thousand domains in the past two months."

He says the technology has also helped reduce card phishing cases involving ANZ customers by 39% over two months.

Phishing is a cyberattack where people impersonate the likes of banks via emails, texts, or phone calls to try and trick victims into revealing sensitive information such as passwords or credit card numbers, or they seek to install malware (malicious software), perhaps by directing victims to fake websites that appear to be real.

According to ANZ NZ, the country's biggest bank, around 20,000 New Zealanders fall victim to phishing scams annually.

The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) says $12.4 million worth of direct financial losses were reported to it during the third quarter last year.

The NCSC’s Chief Operating Officer Mike Jagusch says incident reports relating to malware are increasing.

"The cyber threat landscape is evolving quickly. Malware is becoming much more sophisticated. For example, bad actors now offer malware-as-service platforms that give criminals who lack advanced technical skills the ability to deploy malicious software," Jagusch says.

Thomsen and Ivan Reutskiy, General Manager of Security at 2degrees, are calling for more companies to join their programme, noting scams are becoming more complex and AI-generated attacks are increasing.