Scared Kolkatans scramble to change their debit card PINs after the news of data breach

KOLKATA: The news of debit card data breach early this week has created panic among customers in Kolkata triggering a scramble to change their personal identification numbers (PIN). The scare has peaked in the past two days as the enormity of the breach and the threat it possess to the security of the people’s money sank in. Customer relationship managers have been bombarded with calls by customers to inquire what precautions they should take to protect their account and if their details are also among the leaked data.
The average customers who are not very well versed with the customers have panicked the most.Several senior citizens, homemakers, students and even professionals fall in that category. “I had no clue what to do when I came to know of the data breach. I rushed to the ATM to check the balance in my account. But did not know what to do after that. I had to take help of my father to change the PIN,” said Vedika Ruia, a first year student. The breach happened sometime between May and July—though most banks and their customers came to know of it only recently once customer complaints of unauthorised withdrawals started pouring in --- this year and the banks have been alerting customers to change the security PIN or even replacing the cards. But once the news of the breach became public earlier this week, there has been panic among the debit card holders.
Though this is just about half a percent of total cards issued in the country, this could be the biggest security breach in the Indian banking industry, banking experts have said. “I always thought that the system is fool proof and there is no scope of a breach. But from what has come into the public domain, it seems that millions of debit cards and their details have been compromised. This is shocking because most people are now overly-dependant on electronic transactions,” said Narayan Sharma, a Burrabazar businessman. The mobile phones of the customer relationship managers of various banks have been ringing incessantly. “Many of my clients have panicked. They are calling me up to know if their money is safe with the bank. Many of them have also asked about how to go about changing their PINs,” said the relationship manager of a bank which is considered a favourite for salary accounts.
Though there is no evidence yet to indicate that point of sales had any role to play in compromising the customer details, will this breach force the consumers to change their shopping habits and shy away from using it just as an impulse? This is important because the modern consumers have increasingly grown reliant on debit cards for payments at retail counters due to the convenience factor. “It has been almost a decade that I have stopped carrying cash while going to shop, eating out or partying over the weekends. We had started to take the security that comes with it for granted. But I will be definitely be more careful while purchasing online or I swipe my card the next time I shop,” said Riddhima Ghosh an HR professional in Sector V.
Don’t panic but be very careful, security experts in the banking sector say. “Data theft is big business in many parts of the world, and large-scale breaches will only increase just like the dependence on electronic banking will. There are multiple points from where card details can leak. As a user, safeguard your debit card and other accounting details and follow the guidelines (see box),” said Ashish Khaitan, a cyber-security expert.
Advisory