ICBA Releases Community Banker Guide on Artificial Intelligence Security Readiness
Washington, D.C. (June 3, 2026) — The Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) today released a new guide to help community banks navigate the artificial intelligence security landscape.
Developed by community bankers on ICBA’s AI Task Force to provide practical guidance to their industry colleagues, the Community Banker AI Security Readiness Guide offers an informational overview of the AI threat shift, what it means for local institutions, strengthening third-party due diligence, updating and testing incident response plans, and more.
“The nation’s community banks are leveraging AI to strengthen operations and resilience while they work to address key AI risks and implementation challenges that warrant further attention,” ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey said today. “ICBA’s new Community Banker AI Security Readiness Guide was developed by community bankers for community bankers to help navigate our rapidly evolving security environment.”
Contributors include Andrew Pyles, president and CEO of Eclipse Bank in Louisville, Ky.; David Peterson, chief innovation officer of First National Bankers Bank in Baton Rouge, La.; Ferdinand Feola, senior vice president chief technology officer of The Dime Bank in Honesdale, Pa.; Milton Bartley, co-founder, president, and CEO of ImageQuest in Nashville, Tenn.; Danna Burchess, executive vice president and chief financial officer of First National Bank of Gillette, Wyo.; and Anjelica Dortch, vice president of operational risk at ICBA.
With community banks long serving as adopters of technology to improve operational efficiency and strengthen cybersecurity, ICBA strongly supports responsible AI adoption. In a recent ICBA letter to the Financial Stability Oversight Council and interindustry AI action plan, ICBA called on policymakers to ensure a risk-based, proportionate policy framework and coordinated action to address emerging AI-enabled cyber risk. This week’s executive order on promoting advanced AI innovation and security expressly recognizes community banks as a critical infrastructure component and adopts elements of the action plan in directing federal agencies to secure their systems and promote access to AI security tools.
ICBA looks forward to continuing to work with community bankers, administration officials, lawmakers, and other stakeholders to provide valuable resources to community bankers while ensuring their voice is being heard on these critical issues.