Elderson, who is Vice Chair of the ECB’s bank supervision arm, said in an interview in ECB publication Supervision Newsletter that euro area banks currently do not have access to Mythos.

“Lack of access is not an excuse for inaction. On the contrary, it makes it even more critical that banks step up and act now,” he said.

Reuters reported this week that large US banks, which have been granted early access to Mythos, are rushing to fix scores of data system weaknesses flagged by the tool.

Mythos is viewed by cybersecurity experts as a significant challenge to the banking industry and its data technology systems, prompting a series of warnings from regulators and policymakers.

Elderson warned that banks need to brace for future AI models that enable even more aggressive cyberattacks.

“We need to be able to deal with ever more capable future models that could be released in relatively quick succession,” he said.