Nearly every form of online abuse ultimately traces back to one goal: financial gain. As cybercriminals continue to adapt their tactics to exploit payment systems, brands, and consumer trust, deeper collaboration between financial services and the broader anti-abuse community has never been more critical.
Introducing the M3AAWG Financial Services Special Interest Group (SIG)
To meet this moment, M3AAWG is introducing a new Financial Services Special Interest Group (SIG), designed to connect the rapidly evolving needs of the financial sector directly into M3AAWG’s global anti-abuse ecosystem.
“The financial services industry has a golden opportunity to leverage the extensive anti-abuse expertise within the M3AAWG arena to combat threat actors at the source level, where we can provide systemic protections that ultimately safeguard the people and businesses who depend on secure financial services. The Financial Services SIG will serve as an important connection point for the financial services industry to present unique challenges within the greater M3AAWG ecosystem, so all parties can work towards solutions as threats evolve,” said M3AAWG Board of Directors Chairperson Sara Roper.
Further Connecting Financial Sector Intelligence to M3AAWG’s Anti-Abuse Ecosystem
The Financial Services SIG is designed to operationalize financial-sector intelligence within M3AAWG’s broader anti-abuse ecosystem by enabling structured collaboration on threat patterns, abuse vectors, and mitigation strategies.
“The launch of the Financial Services SIG reflects M3AAWG’s continued commitment to bringing highly targeted expertise into its collaborative anti-abuse framework. By creating a dedicated space for financial services professionals to engage alongside security, infrastructure, and policy experts, the SIG is designed to turn shared insight into practical, proactive defenses that can adapt as adversaries and tactics evolve. When a SIG is at its best, it is a community of deeply specialized experts developing protections before they are exploited, and while the bar has been set high at M3AAWG, we are confident that this newly formed SIG is set to exceed expectations and deliver solutions,” said Amy Cadagin, M3AAWG Executive Director.
Building on Momentum From Recent General Meetings and Organizational Updates
The formation of the Financial Services SIG comes on the heels of M3AAWG’s 65th General Meeting last October. The General Meeting featured a successful financial services programming track, which was well attended, with Charlotte being a financial institution hub. The Financial Services SIG launch also aligned with the organization’s updated structure announcement, with the updates set to take effect upon the completion of our San Diego meeting next month.
“As we grow our membership and our voice, we anticipate seeing a growing number of financial services professionals engage with multiple Priorities within our organization. For instance, those involved in brand defense may be more likely to engage in our Communications and Content organizational priority discussions and Initiatives, while those focused on distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks will likely engage through our Platform and Infrastructure efforts, ” Roper added.
How Financial Services Professionals Can Engage and Lead
You have unique visibility into adversary behavior, and your active engagement is essential. By sharing experiences, insights, and expertise—within M3AAWG’s Chatham House Rules framework—you help inform, motivate, and mobilize the broader community.
How the Broader M3AAWG Community Can Contribute
M3AAWG also calls on members outside the financial services sector to actively contribute to the Financial Services SIG by sharing intelligence on abuse threats, prevention strategies, and mitigation approaches. Because nearly all cybercrime is ultimately financially motivated, cross-sector insight is essential to developing effective, systemic solutions.
Join the Conversation at M3AAWG’s 66th General Meeting
M3AAWG members are encouraged to join us at our 66th General Meeting in San Diego, California, February 16–19, 2026, where practitioners come together to exchange insights, strengthen partnerships, and advance coordinated action against online abuse.
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