The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) issued a
warning to its online banking customers yesterday, warning them to
guard their personal account information closely after a spate of
online thefts were reported across 20 provinces.
A banking official told Xinhua News Agency?in an exclusive
interview: "No hacker has managed to access ICBC's online banking
system. Based on the results seen from police investigations, the
online thefts arose when customers' personal information was
accidentally divulged."
Currently hosting 20 million online banking customers, ICBC has
taken serious new measures to prevent online thefts, such as
updating firewalls, adopting encrypted information transfers and
real-time scanning, the official added.
"However, some customers simply do not take any precautions to
avoid theft," he continued, citing a recent example in which a
company's senior manager entrusted a member of his staff with his
bank card and pin number. The staff member then used the card and
pin number to apply for online banking and stole a huge sum from
his manager's bank cards.
(Xinhua News Agency August 18, 2006)