Taiwan’s Bank SinoPac has taken its new mobile banking app offline after 427 unauthorized transfers totaling more than NT$40 million (about US$1.21 million) were made from the accounts of 419 customers, according to Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC). Some customers said their transaction records showed the transfers had been confirmed by a face scan, although they had not opened the app.
Wang Yun-chung, deputy director-general of the FSC’s Banking Bureau, said the regulator was notified by the bank shortly before noon on Nov. 3 that customers had reported transfers from their accounts despite not having logged into the new app. Each transaction involved about NT$100,000, and all of the money went to a single account at another bank, which has been temporarily frozen.
Bank SinoPac said a software glitch in its new online banking transaction system caused the unauthorized transfers. The bank said it had identified the cause and suspended the service, that no further such transfers had occurred, and that it had returned the money to customers, including transaction fees. The FSC said the bank was using its own funds for the reimbursements and was directing customers to the older version of its app or to ATMs.
The incident came to light when customers posted on Threads that NT$100,000 had been moved from their SinoPac accounts to the same account at Taipei Fubon Bank. The first customer to post said the transaction record listed a face-scan confirmation, even though the customer had not opened the app or set up any designated payee accounts. Several customers said they had received no login or verification-code notifications before the transfers.
Taipei Fubon Bank said it had placed the receiving account under control and that the funds deposited into it had not been moved out. Wang said only SinoPac had reported such an incident, and that no other bank had notified the regulator of similar transfers.
The Criminal Investigation Bureau said it had received 68 reports by noon, many involving male customers with ties to Yunlin County. Police in Yunlin are investigating the case as an offense of obstructing computer use, while the bank has attributed the transfers to a program error.
Bank SinoPac was due to submit a report on the major incident to the FSC by the end of Nov. 3, followed by a detailed report by Nov. 12. Asked whether the bank would face a penalty, Wang said the regulator would decide on further action after the bank had clarified the cause and severity of the incident.
Sources: Focus Taiwan, Yahoo News Taiwan, BlockTempo
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By the ID Tech Editorial Team
