The US Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC)
Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) has issued
a National Exam Program Risk Alert entitled OCIE Cybersecurity
Initiative (the "Risk Alert") in which it announced its
plans to conduct examinations of more than 50 (of approximately
15,000) registered broker-dealers and investment
advisers.1
The Risk Alert does not indicate the nature of the firms that
OCIE intends to examine, although it can be expected that the
sample may be designed to elicit information about how firms of
different sizes and levels of complexity are approaching and
addressing cybersecurity risks. Accordingly, registered
broker-dealers and investment advisers should review the Risk Alert
carefully and begin preparations for dealing with a potential
examination by OCIE of their cybersecurity defenses, whether as
part of this initial review or in the future.
