Sitharaman Flags 'Mythos' AI Cyber Threat, Directs Banks to Boost Defences

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has flagged an emerging artificial intelligence-linked cybersecurity threat called "Mythos" and directed the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) to help the banking sector build stronger defences against it. The IBA's efforts will be led by SBI Chairman Challa Srinivasulu Setty.

"It has always been that the banks in India, because of greater digitisation happening, that we are adequately equipped to meet any challenges and risks, " she said as per inputs from ANI. "Now, because of the new challenge which coming in the name of Mythos, about which not much is known, MeitY has an active engagement with tech companies, various authorities and governments across the globe to understand how this will play out and the preparedness needed," Sithraman added.

Sitharaman made the remarks after inaugurating State Bank of India's Maharashtra circle local head office in Pune, following a meeting with representatives of the Indian banking system on the threat. IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw was also present at the meeting.

"We need something new, something far more versatile to be able to counter the newer threats which are likely to come," Sitharaman further said.

What is Mythos?

Mythos is part of Anthropic's Claude family of AI models, built for complex reasoning and coding tasks. What distinguishes it is its ability to operate across the cybersecurity spectrum, from identifying vulnerabilities to actively exploiting them.

In an April 7 note, Anthropic described the model as a "watershed moment for cybersecurity," stating it had already identified thousands of high-severity vulnerabilities across major operating systems and web browsers, and that it could outperform humans in certain hacking tasks.

Rather than a public release, Anthropic is providing early access through a programme called Project Glasswing to select technology companies including Microsoft, Nvidia and Cisco. The initiative extends access to over 50 organisations, supported by more than $100 million in usage credits, to test and secure critical systems ahead of any wider rollout.

Why Banks Are Worried

India is not alone in its concern. The US government has also held talks with Wall Street banks on similar measures, and the White House is reportedly planning to deploy Mythos across federal agencies to strengthen cybersecurity.

Recent global gatherings, including the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings, saw conversations repeatedly return to one question: what if cyber risk is no longer human-scale, Bloomberg reported.

Regulators, are concerned that AI systems like Mythos could identify and exploit vulnerabilities faster than institutions can repair them, particularly in banking, where legacy infrastructure remains common, an earlier report by Reuters stated.

Anthropic has said Mythos uncovered vulnerabilities that had persisted for decades.

Officials cited by the Financial Times described the model as a "fundamental change in the playing field," warning it could chain together vulnerabilities at a speed and scale beyond human capability. In finance, Reuters noted, cyber incidents can rapidly spill over into market disruptions and undermine broader confidence in the system.