(CBA), the federal bank, said in a statement that nearly 20 million accounts had been affected by the loss of tape backup data from customer statement (customer statements) for more than 15 years in 2016.
It immediately assures the customer that their information has not been compromised and that the customer does not need to take action.
Angus Sullivan (Angus Sullivan), chief executive of CBA`s acting group in charge of retail banking, issued a statement on video website and Twitter after BuzzFeed Australia released a report on the incident Wednesday. "these tapes do not contain PIN codes, passwords or other data that could cause account fraud," he said.
The bank said in a statement that there was no evidence that the 19.8 million accounts affected after the accident involved suspicious activity.
CBA said it could not confirm that two tapes containing past customer statements had been destroyed. The tapes contain information about the customer`s name, address, account number and transaction details between 2000 and early 2016. A 2016 survey determined that the tape was likely to have been discarded, after the incident. The Federal Bank immediately established a mechanism to strengthen customer protection.
"We take customer data protection very seriously and such incidents are unacceptable," Sullivan said. "I would like to assure our clients that we have taken the necessary steps to protect their information, and we apologize for any concerns that may arise from this incident."
He also said they informed regulators about the matter in 2016, but after discussions with (OAIC), the Australian information commissioner`s office, the bank did not consider it necessary to notify clients. But OAIC is now investigating further as regulators criticise the bank for "widespread complacency," according to BuzzFeed.
(APRA), Australia`s prudential regulator, said on Tuesday that community trust in Australian banks had been "severely weakened" and that federal banks had "fallen out of favour" by failing to meet expectations.
