SEC names cyber security adviser amid attack fears

(Reuters) — The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission named Christopher Hetner senior adviser to the chair as it looks to address rising instances of cyber attacks.

The appointment comes two weeks after SEC Chair Mary Jo White told the Reuters Financial Regulation Summit in Washington D.C. that cyber attacks were the biggest risk facing the financial system, adding that the SEC "can't do enough" in the cyber security sector.

The financial industry has been rattled by a cyber theft from the Bangladesh central bank funneled through SWIFT, a member-owned industry cooperative that handles the bulk of cross-border payment instructions between banks.

Hetner, who currently coordinates cyber-security efforts within the SEC's office of compliance inspections and examinations, will help address cyber-security policy and assess market risk across the agency, the regulator said on Thursday.

Hetner, who joined the SEC from Ernst and Young in 2015, has more than 20 years of experience in information security and technology, the SEC said.