Cybersecurity: What brokers need to know

Cybercrime is becoming more sophisticated and, without robust processes in place, brokers could be in the firing line.

In our November Get More with Aldermore session, we brought together three experts to help brokers understand cyber risk and how you can protect against it.

AI, deepfakes, supply-chain breaches and social-engineering attacks are now part of everyday business in the cybercrime world, as it evolves at super speed. Unfortunately, brokers hold exactly the kind of sensitive client data that criminals want.

Aldermore’s cyber lead, Kirsty Fish, broker Kirsty Dudek from Lavender Mortgages and Sion Cleaver, security operations analyst at Aldermore, each brought a different perspective to this month’s discussion. They explored how threats are changing, the real-world impact of a cyber-attack, and the simple, practical habits you can adopt to strengthen security across your business.

Here’s what you need to know.

The size of the threat

Most organisations remain vulnerable and breaches often start with simple human behaviours rather than advanced technical flaws. “Cyber security isn’t just about technology, it’s about trust”, explained Kirsty.

AI is also changing the game, allowing criminals to create convincing fake emails, clone voices and generate documents that look identical to those from lenders or colleagues. “A fake voice message from your boss isn’t science fiction anymore,” warned Kirsty. “It’s a reality.”

For brokers, the most common weak points include:

• weak or reused passwords
• phishing via email, phone or text
• oversharing on LinkedIn and automated out-of-office replies
• unpatched software (that hasn’t been updated), rarely restarted devices and older apps
• mixing personal and business systems
• public Wi-Fi in cafés, trains and hotels
• supply-chain vulnerabilities across portals, CRMs and sourcing systems.

Kirsty also emphasised third-party risk, noting that brokers depend on, and work with, many external providers. “If one of them is compromised, you can feel the impact even when your own systems are clean,” she said, noting recent cases, such as the Harrods supplier breach and leaked HMRC passwords.

She also highlighted the growing regulatory pressure around operational resilience. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) are making cyber hygiene a requirement, with brokers expected to show you have strong controls, clear reporting pathways and basic protections in place.

However, this doesn’t have to be complicated or costly.

1. Strengthen access
   Use multi-factor authentication, adopt a password manager and avoid reusing the same password for different accounts.
2. Pause and verify
   Take an extra moment before clicking. Don’t rely on gut instinct, even if a voice or email style feels familiar. Check sender details and confirm unusual requests through a separate channel.
3. Stay updated
   Allow automatic updates and restart devices regularly so security patches apply.
4. Back up
   Keep secure copies of important files online and offline and test your restore process.
5. Act fast
   Report suspicious activity early, rather than trying to fix anything alone.

“Small actions across the whole team make the biggest difference,” she said.

It was followed by weeks of worry, hundreds of calls, identity checks and emails, alongside the pressure of managing clients, lenders, the IT firm, the network and the Information Commissioner’s Office.

What struck Kirsty most was the loss of control: being temporarily suspended from some lenders’ panels, individually emailing almost a thousand clients, and managing reputational concerns with her introducers. Her firm lost around five months of business and incurred high costs.

Her experience offered clear lessons for brokers, from the need to take cybercrime seriously to staying up to date with the ever-changing threat. Kirsty added that it’s important that brokers slow down and check best practice.

The bigger picture 

Finally, Sion Cleaver explained the broader context of how the cyber threat is shifting.

He said that AI is making attacks more personalised, allowing criminals to create realistic video messages with minimal effort, and supply-chain attacks are rising.

He also touched on longer-term emerging risks, including criminals potentially manipulating medical devices such as pacemakers or diabetes trackers, harvesting biometric data from smartwatches and wearables, and interfering with driverless vehicles, signalling systems or wider infrastructure.

These terrifying scenarios may feel distant from your day-to-day work, but they illustrate how attacks are becoming more blended, more physical and harder to detect.

His message to brokers was simple: it’s everyone’s job to get the fundamentals right and build resilience.

Cyber threats continue to evolve, but the strongest protection still comes from small, consistent habits, vigilance and awareness of the risks. Brokers can’t eliminate every threat, but you can take clear, practical steps to put your businesses in a stronger position. Aldermore will continue providing guidance and insights to help you stay confident and secure.