Financial firms need to be mindful of cybersecurity challenges as they look to integrate blockchain, a top IT agency for the European Union said this week.

The European Union Agency for Network and Information Security (ENISA) has published a new report on blockchain tech, which seeks to highlight the security challenges that large businesses might experience in the face of broader blockchain adoption. Key management, data privacy and oversight of smart contracts were some of the major items identified in the report.

It’s the first time the agency, founded in 2004, has released a major report on the tech. Last year, ENISA published a glossary page on its official website that offered an overview of blockchain, noting at the time that “it is too soon to tell whether blockchain will live up to its promise”.

According to the new report, executives at financial firms should give due consideration to security as they weigh applications of the tech.

Udo Helmbrecht, executive director of ENISA, said in a statement:

“Cybersecurity should be considered as a key element in the blockchain implementation by financial institutions.”

Code review and mechanisms for actually accessing distributed networks should also be at top-of-mind, the report goes on to state, while also highlighting that banks should consider the security challenges of handling digital asset wallets.

A full copy of the report can be found below:

WP2016 3-1 4 Blockchain Security by CoinDesk on Scribd

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