Updates with Banif's reply

A man has filed a judicial protest against Banif Bank, holding it responsible for €8,000 he lost when his bank account was hacked into last summer.

Benjamin Curmi accessed his bank account through Banif’s internet banking facility when he noticed that third parties had withdrawn €8,000 on the previous 26 June.

He reported the matter to the bank, which found out that the funds were withdrawn through the use of a Malaysian IP address. Mr Curmi also found out that the same IP address had been used to access the bank accounts of at least three other Banif clients unknown to him on the same day that his account was accessed illicitly.

But the bank itself told him no such thing: in his protest, Mr Curmi noted that the bank provided him with inaccurate information on the unauthorised transaction, and that it has cited confidentiality reasons to refuse to provide him with the information he requested to prove that he was the victim of a crime.

Mr Curmi also observed that the third parties who accessed his and other clients’ bank accounts could only have done so either through the bank itself, or as the result of deficiencies in its security system.

He is thus asking the bank to refund him the €8,000 stolen from him, along with legal interest and the expense he incurred to appoint technical experts to look into the matter, and is also holding the bank responsible for any damages caused.

Claims unfounded 'in fact and at law' - Banif

In response to the judicial protest, Banif Bank said that the matter has been thoroughly investigated, and it rejects all claims as unfounded "in fact and at law." 

"The Bank would like to assure the public that rigorous controls are applied at all times using the highest of international standards and none of its secure systems and infrastructures have ever been hacked," Banif said in a statement.