Regulators looking to strengthen banks' cyber defenses

The move announced Wednesday by the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and a Treasury Department banking agency is designed to get banks' senior executives and directors to pay closer attention to cybersecurity, agency officials said.

The rules proposed by the three agencies would pile on a second set of stricter standards for big banks' computer systems that are considered critical to the functioning of the financial industry.

The breaches raised concerns about the Fed's ability to safeguard sensitive financial information in its computer systems, the lawmakers said.

The issue of suspected Chinese government hacking has been sensitive since the disclosure last year of a massive breach of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management's databases, which the U.S. believed was carried out by Chinese cyber spies.