Are Banks Doing Enough to Keep Your Information Safe?

Banks and other financial institutions store some of the most personal information about you. Your Social Security number, contact information, home address, credit card numbers, bank account information…your bank has all of this data and more stored somewhere in its database. All it takes is one sophisticated hacker to crack the code and access all of this sensitive personal information about you. Is your bank doing enough to keep your info safe? Here’s how to find out.

The Need for Advanced Security Technologies

Bank “robberies” have gone digital. It’s no longer bank vaults modern thieves are after, but customer information they can use to secretly drain accounts. Today’s hackers are smart about their approaches. They use the latest techniques and technologies to illegally gain access to even the most sophisticated data security systems. Banks can hope to outsmart fraudsters by installing capable digital security systems.

Your bank should ensure customer privacy and security through failsafe systems that prevent, deter, and detect bank fraud. Those in the financial industry need to stay at least one step ahead of robbers if they wish to protect sensitive data. Your bank should be constantly working to optimize its security and to prevent fraud. This includes keeping information safe in the cloud. Bank customer data becomes even more vulnerable in the cloud than elsewhere, as the cloud poses new challenges for financial institutions.

Banks today must employ multi-channel efforts to prevent fraud. They must put up security “fences” around both hard data stored in computers as well as drifting in the cloud. One such way to achieve this is to blend digital security efforts with old-fashioned customer interactions and direct contact to prevent and address fraud. Automated security systems and human interactions should work together to adequately protect bank customers.

Breaches, Mistakes, and Human Errors at Banks

Unfortunately, not all financial institutions are doing the best they can to protect sensitive customer information. The local Wells Fargo in Mankato, Minnesota currently faces a civil lawsuit for disclosing sensitive customer information that could have put the customers’ lives at risk. The customers were a mother and teenage daughter who had enrolled in the Safe at Home program to change their address after the daughter suffered violent sexual assault and death threats from the assailant.

The lawsuit alleges Wells Fargo negligently disclosed the information of the family in the victim protection program to the public and sold the information to vendors, despite being aware of the program during the mother’s application for a loan. The bank sent the family letters and updates on the loan inquiry to the new, secret address, breaching the rules of the program. The family also began to receive junk mail at their secret residence, pointing to the fact Wells Fargo sold their information to outside vendors.

The claimants, represented by our very own attorneys at Knutson + Casey, are seeking more than $50,000 in damages for each claim: negligent infliction of emotional distress, breach of contract, and invasion of privacy. The lawsuit is still pending. Meanwhile, the mother and daughter now live in a home where they sadly no longer feel safe. This is just one local example of a bank not doing enough to keep customer information safe.

What to Do About a Breach at Your Bank in Minneapolis

Contact an attorney as soon as you suspect a breach of privacy or sensitive customer information at your Mankato bank. We have experience handling lawsuits against negligent financial institutions. A lawyer can help you exercise your rights as a wronged bank customer and seek financial reparations for your losses. You might be eligible for damages reimbursing you for financial losses, inconvenience, lost wages, pain and suffering, and more depending on the situation.