Financial markets – Largest data theft with credit cards for years – Süddeutsche.de

banks exchange most of more than 100 000 pieces. Fraud cases have been unknown

If you have a credit card, you should currently be careful. In Germany, data were taken from maps en masse in recent weeks. Several banks have responded precaution cards of customers exchanged for information of the SZ to prevent fraud. It is the largest case of identity theft in credit in recent years. Alone at Commerzbank were affected 15,000 cards in belonging to the Group Comdirect 20 000. The Postbank exchanged loud Handelsblatt even 50 000. cards.

said a spokesman of the Institute, that customers will not cause any damage. Fraud was also at other banks so far nothing is known. Obviously it is in the exchange-action is a precautionary measure. “We were informed by a service provider that could potentially lead to abuses,” said a spokesman for Commerzbank. In the letter to the customer says, “From the credit card organization we have received indications that third parties might possibly be unjustified came into possession of credit card data.”

According to reports, the credit card companies Visa and MasterCard informed Commerzbank about the data leak. One possible cause is that a service provider who processes the data, has been spied by hackers. Have fraudsters on name and credit card number of a bank customer can buy it at its own cost. Therefore, banks sometimes decide in such a case, replace the cards of the affected clients.

fraud with credit cards is more common, it is almost an everyday business for banks. Unusually, however, is the high number of the exchanged cards. In banking circles it was said that one could assume that the number of the exchanged cards with other major banks was also five digits. This may have been written by their institutions in the past few weeks more than 100, 000 bank customers. The data leak was discovered in December.

Also in the SZ came forward in recent weeks clients of various institutions with which the credit card was replaced, inter alia, of Landesbank Berlin and the Hypo-Vereinsbank. “We suspect that someone has stored on your credit card data obtained,” it says in a letter of Landesbank Berlin to a customer. Therefore, they had his Visa card blocked immediately. Until you it a new zuschicke, days might pass. Customers of other financial institutions were waiting up to two weeks on a new card.

An indication that credit cards were blocked on a large scale, can be found in the customer letter of Landesbank Berlin not. A spokeswoman could not say whether it is the same case is like Commerzbank and Postbank. When HypoVereinsbank it said that one must “analyze only” the situation.

The credit card company Visa emphasized that the data had not been picked up within him. Nevertheless, were affected by the exchange action Visa cards. Man working “closely with the community and financial institutions together to report the card-issuing banks vulnerable accounts, enabling them to take all necessary steps to protect the customer”. For credit card holders increased caution is currently in any case offered. Visa recommends them, “their accounts to be checked regularly and to notify the card-issuing financial institution immediately suspicious transactions”. Cardholders of Visa are protected in cases of fraud and received their money back. MasterCard declined to comment on the case.