Victims of bank hacking asked to report to BSP 

A lawmaker on Sunday said depositors who lost money due to computer hacking should file formal complaints with the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), according to a report by BusinessMirror.

Rep. Michael T. Defensor of Anakalusugan said in a statement that victims should seek assistance if they are not satisfied with the way their cases were resolved by their banks.

“The BSP has an administrative mechanism in place to provide remedy to aggrieved depositors who feel that they’ve been treated unfairly by their banks,” Defensor said.

He urged disgruntled bank clients to email the BSP’s Consumer Assistance Desk at consumeraffairs@bsp.gov.ph.

Defensor, meanwhile, dismissed the blanket liability disclaimers in the terms and conditions governing bank accounts as adhesion contracts “that cannot be enforced when depositors lose money under conditions where they are not at fault.”

“If you are a blameless depositor and you lose money because the bank’s computer system got hacked and illegal transfers were made out of your account, then the bank has no choice but to reimburse your losses,” Defensor said.

“Certain provisions of bank adhesion contracts, such as sweeping liability denials, may be voided or disregarded by regulators and the courts, if it is found that innocent depositors lost money because of security breaches in the bank’s computer system,” the lawmaker explained.

Response

DEFENSOR was responding to the controversy surrounding BDO Unibank Inc.’s alleged insertion of an all-encompassing liability disclaimer in its terms and conditions after hackers stole funds from hundreds of depositors.

The disavowal states that the bank “shall not be liable for any looses arising from improper or fraudulent access to online banking accounts.”

BDO, the country’s largest bank by assets, in a statement, has categorically denied updating its terms and conditions with the disclaimer, saying the clause has been there “for a long time.”

BDO has also clarified that there were no changes made to their terms and conditions after the cybercrime incident that affected hundreds of their clients earlier this month.

Weeks ago, BDO has been the target of a cybercrime incident wherein cash were transferred unknowingly from BDO account holders to a certain “Mark Nagoyo,” who has several accounts in the UnionBank of the Philippines Inc.

BDO said they are currently processing the reimbursement of close to 700 clients affected by the recent online fraudulent transactions.