July 19, 2013 - SIFMA today released the following statement from Karl Schimmeck, vice president, financial services operations, upon completion of the Quantum Dawn 2 cybersecurity exercise.

"Cybersecurity is a top priority for the financial industry. The Quantum Dawn 2 exercise was a success, with robust participation from over 500 individuals at approximately 50 entities from the financial services sector and the government. This exercise gave participants the opportunity to run through their crisis response procedures, practice information sharing and refine their protocols relating to a systemic cyber attack. We look forward to analyzing today's findings with our members to identify areas for improvement and best practices that will enable firms and the entire sector to better prepare for and defend against cyber threats. We expect an after action report will be available in the next month.

"SIFMA continues to believe that industry efforts alone are insufficient to address cyber attacks. A strong partnership between the industry and government is essential to effectively defend against these threats. As our CEO, former Senator Judd Gregg, said in his recent Bloomberg OpEd, it's vital that Congress work quickly to pass legislation that promotes information sharing, updates the criminal penalties associated with cyber-attacks, and provides protections for companies that share information and respond to malicious activity.

"Moving forward, the industry will continue to dedicate significant time and resources to address this growing threat and protect our clients and the integrity of the financial markets."