A data breach instantly puts the security of people’s information at-risk as it could end up in the hands of the wrong people. Standard Bank confirmed recently that they had suffered a data breach of financial and personal information of some of their clients.
According to a report by the Daily Investor on 7 November 2024, a senior employee has been implicated. They had authorised access to client data and copied some of this information to a device that was unprotected. Standard Bank has taken action by initiating a disciplinary process against the staff member. There is also an investigation underway. So how do clients know if they have been affected by this breach? Find out.
ALL ABOUT THE STANDARD BANK DATA BREACH
Standard Bank clarified to the Daily Investor that information, including the pins and passwords of clients, is never stored by them. Therefore, they said it was not affected by the data breach. The financial services provider revealed in a statement to the publication:
“The protection of our clients’ information is of the utmost priority, and as part of our ongoing commitment to clients, we continuously enhance security protocols and monitoring.”
According to a spokesman who responded to TechCentral, divergence from their “stated policy will be dealt with decisively,” and they will protect their clients’ interests. The publication said in their report on 7 November 2024 that they were alerted about the breach after one of the bank’s clients informed them.
An employee copied specific client data to an unprotected personal device, Standard Bank confirmed.https://t.co/n9rHiVWjDS
— Daily Investor (@DailyInvestorSA) November 7, 2024
WHO HAS BEEN AFFECTED BY THIS DATA BREACH?
Standard Bank said they had informed those clients affected by the breach. They explained: “In line with the Protection of Personal Information Act, the bank has communicated with impacted clients and has also notified the appropriate regulatory authorities. If a client has not been contacted by the bank, they have not been impacted by this data incident.”
The client who informed TechCentral about the data breach shared a letter with them that revealed the steps the bank was taking regarding the incident. According to the letter, the bank said a “comprehensive investigation” was being conducted. They also said they were providing help and guidance to those that have been affected. This is “to mitigate against any potential risks.”
STANDARD BANK ALSO RECEIVED NUMEROUS FRAUD COMPLAINTS THIS YEAR
In early July 2024, Standard Bank was bombarded by complaints from clients. The customers expressed that they had noticed suspicious activities in their accounts. The bank said at the time they were aware of attempts of fraud on certain international transactions. Standard Bank had further “issued a direct fraud notification to impacted customers.” They stated that some cards had been blocked because of potential fraud and would be reissued.
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN A VICTIM OF BANK FRAUD?
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