Patelco data breach disrupts banking services across California

The recent Patelco data breach has caused widespread disruption among its customer base of nearly half a million individuals in California. This breach, discovered on June 29, forced Patelco Credit Union to halt critical banking functions. As a result, many customers faced challenges with accessing their funds through debit and credit card transactions, exacerbating concerns and highlighting vulnerabilities in the financial sector’s cybersecurity infrastructure.

Here is everything known about the Patelco data breach so far.

Patelco data breach: What happened?

On June 29, Patelco Credit Union, which serves nearly half a million customers in California, experienced a serious security breach. Patelco data breach forced the firm to shut down several important banking systems, such as:

• Transfers (including Zelle)
• Direct Deposits
• Balance Inquiries
• Payments

Debit and credit card transactions only partly worked, which caused problems for customers trying to withdraw money or make purchases. Many customers complained on social media about not being able to use ATMs or debit cards.

The Patelco data breach necessitated the shutdown of essential banking services such as transfers, direct deposits, balance inquiries, and payments.

Patelco suggested customers use ATMs in their larger Co-Op network, which has over 30,000 shared branch ATMs across the U.S. However, many customers still had trouble accessing their money.

CEO and President Erin Mendez emailed customers to explain the situation:

“Dear XXXX,

We are writing to let you know that on June 29, we experienced a serious security incident. This required us to shut down some of our day-to-day banking systems so that we can remediate the issue and contain the impact, including online banking, our mobile App, and our call center. Currently, electronic transactions such as transfers (including Zelle), direct deposit, balance inquiries, and payments are unavailable. Debit and credit card transactions function in a limited capacity.

Patelco branches, our call center and Live Chat will be open and ready to assist as much as they can during our regular business hours starting tomorrow, Monday July 1.

For cash withdrawals and deposits, you can access Patelco ATMs, including over 30,000 shared branch ATMs all over the country. Find your nearest branch and ATM (including hours of operation) at patelco.org/locations.

Our teams are working around the clock with top-tier cybersecurity experts to assess the situation and to restore service to you. Unfortunately, we are unable to provide an ETA on when those systems will be running as expected.

Your trust and partnership are of the utmost importance to us, and we are committed to resolving this issue with the highest level of diligence. We know this news is concerning, and we are committed to keeping you informed as the investigation continues.

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we navigate this challenging situation.

Sincerely,

Erin Mendez President & CEO Patelco Credit Union”

Since the Patelco data breach, the firm has been working with cybersecurity experts to figure out what happened and to restore their services. Despite their efforts, CEO Erin Mendez admitted they didn’t know when everything would be back to normal. She assured customers that their teams were working hard to fix the issue and apologized for the inconvenience.

The specific details of the data breached at Patelco Credit Union have not been disclosed publicly yet. Typically, data breaches can involve various types of sensitive information such as personal details (names, addresses, social security numbers), financial information (bank account numbers, credit card details), or login credentials (usernames, passwords). The exact nature of the Patelco data breach would depend on how the cyberattack was executed and what vulnerabilities were exploited.

Is Patelco not working? You are not the only one

Yes, as mentioned, Patelco Credit Union experienced a data breach recently, leading to several critical banking systems shutting down. This included services such as transfers (including Zelle), direct deposits, balance inquiries, and payments. Debit and credit card transactions were also affected, working only partially. This disruption caused significant inconvenience to customers who faced difficulties in withdrawing money or making purchases, prompting many to voice their frustrations on social media about issues with ATMs and debit cards.

The Patelco data breach, identified on June 29, 2024, impacted nearly half a million customers across California.

This incident shows how important strong cybersecurity is for banks. As more banking moves online, the risks from cyberattacks increase. Patelco needs to learn from this breach by strengthening its security systems and being better prepared for future incidents.

Customers should also be aware of their bank’s security practices and push for more transparency and accountability. Both banks and customers need to stay alert and proactive in dealing with cyber threats, such as the Patelco data breach.

All images are generated by Eray Eliaçık/Bing