Unpacking Cybersecurity in Financial Research: A Systematic Mapping Approach

Abstract

This study presents a comprehensive bibliometric and content analysis of cybersecurity research in financial institutions covering the period from 2000 to 2025. By applying the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) methodology, we systematically identified and screened 2,005 peer-reviewed articles indexed in the Web of Science Core Collection. The review focuses on cybersecurity within the financial system, particularly in the banking and insurance sectors, and maps research trends, innovation gaps, and thematic evolutions in this domain. Thematic analysis on the basis of keyword co-occurrence identified three distinct clusters. The first cluster focuses on cybersecurity and artificial intelligence, including keywords such as cyber security, phishing, malware, and machine learning, highlighting AI-driven threat detection and digital defense mechanisms. The second cluster focuses on institutional risk management and information security, emphasizing governance, authentication, and systemic controls within financial institutions. The third cluster involves emerging digital technologies, such as blockchain, cloud computing, and FinTech, underscoring the technological innovations that shape financial services and data protection frameworks. Despite growing research output and increasing attention to cyber risk from both academic and regulatory perspectives, the field remains fragmented, with limited empirical evaluation of cybersecurity investment effectiveness. By combining PRISMA guidelines with bibliometric mapping, this study offers a structured and interdisciplinary overview of cybersecurity research in financial institutions. It highlights key research frontiers and calls for deeper empirical inquiry, particularly on systemic financial risk, cross-sector governance, and cybersecurity policy design.