Tesco Bank suspends online banking following fraudulent activity
Tesco Bank has taken the extraordinary measure of temporarily halting online transactions after thousands of customers experienced criminal activity in their accounts over the weekend. The move also means that customers are unable to use contactless payments.
Customers were alerted over the weekend via text message after suspicious activity was noticed in numerous accounts. Some have found that hundreds of pounds have gone missing from their accounts, but it is not clear whether the problem stems from a direct hack of Tesco Bank, or if a retailer suffered a security breach.
The number of people affected by fraudulent activity is such that Tesco Bank's support lines are struggling to cope with demand. People looking for help have found waiting times of more than an hour before they are able to speak with anyone. The bank says that just a "small proportion" of customers have been affected, and tries to reassure people that they will not end up losing out financially.
A message on the Tesco Bank website informs customers of the suspension of activity:
Tesco Bank can confirm that, over the weekend, some of its customers' current accounts have been subject to online criminal activity, in some cases resulting in money being withdrawn fraudulently.
We apologize for the worry and inconvenience that this has caused for customers, and can only stress that we are taking every step to protect our customers' accounts. That is why, as a precautionary measure, we have taken the decision today to temporarily stop online transactions from current accounts. This will only affect current account customers. While online transactions will not be available, current account customers will still be able to use their cards for cash withdrawals, chip and pin payments, and all existing bill payments and direct debits will continue as normal. We are working hard to resume normal service on current accounts as soon as possible.
We continue to work with the authorities and regulators to address the fraud and will keep our customers informed through regular updates on our website, Twitter and direct communication.
We can reassure customers that any financial loss as a result of this activity will be resolved fully by Tesco Bank, and we are working to refund accounts that have been subject to fraud as soon as possible.
The Bank says that new cards will be sent out to anyone who has been contacted via text. Anyone who has not yet been contacted -- and who does not see any suspicious transactions on their statements -- is unlikely to have been affected.
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