Issue:
On 27 July 2022, the Mortgage Brokers Council of Canada (MBRCC) published new national guidance to support cybersecurity preparedness in the mortgage brokering sector by proposing practices to avoid cybersecurity incidents and properly respond to them when they occur. These principles were developed in response to changing business practices driven by the pandemic and will help protect consumers across Canada. The guidance is available on the MBRCC website.
The MBRCC is comprised of regulators across Canada responsible for administering mortgage broker legislation and regulating the industry in their respective jurisdictions. FCNB participated in the design of this guidance.
Regulatory Requirements:
Cyber threats are a growing risk for organizations within FCNB’s regulated sectors. As technology evolves, more and more transactions take place electronically and more data is stored electronically.
It is a legislative requirement that mortgage brokerages and mortgage administrators keep complete and accurate records of their business activities, financial affairs, client transactions, and demonstrate compliance with mortgage broker legislation.
Mortgage brokerages and mortgage administrators are also required to implement policies and procedures that establish a system of controls and supervision that:
- provides assurance the mortgage brokerage or mortgage administrator and individuals acting on its behalf comply with mortgage broker legislation; and
- manages the risks associated with the mortgage brokerage or mortgage administrator business in accordance with prudent business practices.
Expectation:
FCNB endorses the guidance on cybersecurity preparedness developed by the MBRCC. It is the expectation of the Director of Mortgage Brokers at FCNB that mortgage brokerages and administrators have established proper cybersecurity measures to ensure record-keeping compliance requirements are in place, and that these practices are outlined in their policies and procedures manual. The policies and procedures manual is reviewed as part of the mortgage broker compliance inspection conducted by FCNB and may be reviewed by the Director at any time.