Standard Bank denies security breach

Standard Bank denied that its system had been breached despite claims from clients on social media about alleged fraudulent transactions and money missing from their accounts.

Earlier on Tuesday, 2 July 2024, News24 published an article on Standard Bank customers who took to social media platform X to vent about an alleged “massive security breach” at the bank.

The article said several clients reported fraudulent transactions or missing money from their accounts. 

The publication reported that clients complained that their bank accounts had been compromised, “with many saying they could not block their cards or accounts due to the long wait in the bank’s call centre queue”.

Some X users also claimed the Standard Bank app was offline.

In response to questions from Daily Investor, Standard Bank denied that its system had been breached.

“Standard Bank would, however, like to apologise to customers for delayed responses when calling the call centre. This is due to a spike in month-end transactions,” the bank explained. 

“The bank has multiple security and authentication layers it has made available to its customers.”

It said that in addition to the call centre, customers can use the bank’s app or internet banking to report fraud or manage their cards or card payments. 

The bank also provided some tips and best practices for clients concerned about fraud and security breaches –

• Password best practices
  • Use strong passwords for all your online accounts.
  • Consider using a password manager to securely store and manage your passwords.
• Multi-factor authentication (MFA) and biometrics
  • Enable MFA wherever possible to add an extra layer of security.
  • Biometric authentication – such as fingerprint or facial recognition – enhances account protection.
• Combat social engineering
  • Be cautious of unsolicited calls, emails, or messages asking for personal information
  • Verify the legitimacy of requests before sharing sensitive data
• Contactless payment methods
  • Use contactless cards or mobile wallets for secure transactions
• Precautions with public wi-fi
  • Avoid conducting sensitive transactions over public Wi-Fi networks.

Standard Bank also referred clients to its Security Centre for more details and tips on preventing fraud.