About 61% of financial services businesses worldwide require employees to complete privacy training, as the sector increasingly realises the importance of protecting its digital assets, according to a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) survey.

“As it moves towards the core of digital businesses, the Internet of Things will drive the need for more effective data privacy governance,” PWC says.

“Top priorities include new policies and technologies to safeguard against consumer privacy violations, and updated data governance policies.”

The Global State of Information Security Survey shows 41% of respondents plan to increase spending on third-party partner security and 39% will invest in open-source software in the next year.

“This year financial services businesses continue to invest in this important area as they face not only increasingly sophisticated threat actors but also more intense scrutiny from industry regulators and global changes in cyber security and privacy legislation,” PWC Principal Financial Services Leader, Cyber Security and Privacy Joseph Nocera said.

“One of the top focus areas we’re seeing is the need to proactively monitor the cyber-security standards and capabilities of third-party vendors.”

About 41% of respondents rank assessment of third-party vendors’ security protocols and standards as the leading challenge to information security efforts.

The online survey, run between April and June, took responses from more than 10,000 participants across 13 industries in 133 economies. About 20% of the respondents are from the Asia-Pacific region, 34% from North America and 31% from Europe.