RBC Royal Bank
~ Reduced daily ATM limit ~
PHILIPSBURG--RBC Royal Bank says it has identified a skimming incident that has potentially victimised a number of its debit cardholders in St. Maarten in what the bank sees as “a coordinated and aggressive criminal effort.”
“Safeguarding the security of our systems and the confidentiality of our clients’ information is always a top priority. We are now in the process of contacting all clients who were potentially affected and we will be replacing their respective debit cards as soon as possible,” the bank said in response to a number of questions from this newspaper on the skimming effort.
The bank encourages RBC debit cardholders to call its Client Advice Centre at +1-721-546-7288 if they have any questions.
As a preventative measure, RBC said it has reduced the daily ATM limit when withdrawing cash on all affected debit cards. “We know that this restriction may be inconvenient and we are committed to supporting any of our clients who are affected by this disruption as quickly as possible,” the bank said.
“Security is critical to our business and will always be a top priority. We invest in and employ industry best practices to protect our systems so our clients can have confidence in their financial transactions. Unfortunately, the elements behind hacking and skimming efforts are similarly committed to their illegal activities. The reality is that crimes of this type have become increasingly problematic, not only in the financial services sector, but for other industries around the globe.”
RBC encourages its clients to review account (e-)statements, monitor credit reports where possible, periodically change passwords, be cautious of unsolicited requests for information and verify they are dealing with a trusted source.
If clients suspect their account has been affected, they should call RBC’s Client Advice Centre at +1-721-546-7288 or visit the RBC branch as soon as possible to work through next steps.
“We remain committed to working with clients who may have been impacted by fraudulent activity to help them through what we know can be a difficult and stressful event.”
RBC also emphasises proactive steps clients can take to protect themselves when using the full range of service options and provides a number of useful tips on its website regarding how clients can protect themselves:
http://www.rbc.com/privacysecurity/ca/how-we-protect-you.html
RBC also said it is working closely with authorities as they investigate this attack on the bank’s valued clients and the related fraud, and will continue to invest and deploy the latest security protocols and technology to combat them.
