Customers heed advice following HMRC data loss

One week on from the announcement regarding the HM Revenue & Customs incident involving the loss of 25 million personal records, APACS, the UK payments association, is pleased to report that YouGov research suggests that the majority of Child Benefit recipients have reacted as advised and have remained calm but are being extra vigilant.

The survey conducted by YouGov shows that:

62 per cent of adults who receive Child Benefit checked their bank statements;
30 per cent of adults took no action following the news;
10 per cent changed their passwords; and
6 per cent changed their PINs.

Sandra Quinn, APACS Director of Communications comments, “The YouGov survey shows that customers have not panicked and most seem to have followed the advice issued. This matches the anecdotal feedback we’ve had from our banks about their customer queries.

“There is no need for bank customers to do any more than to be extra vigilant, as there is still no evidence that the data has fallen into criminal hands. We continue to urge customers to do the simple security checks that they should be doing anyway. This includes checking their statements or balance regularly, opening all post and disposing of it all with care.”

The banking industry continues to reassure its customers that sort code and bank account, national insurance number, date of birth, name and address details are not enough in themselves for an ID fraudster to access your bank account – as additional security information and passwords are always required. Only those customers who use their child’s name or date of birth as a password for accessing their bank account are encouraged to think about changing it as a result of this incident.

The HMRC has set up a Child Benefit Helpline on 0845 302 1444 for customers who want more detail. The banking industry has also produced a customer fact sheet which is available for download from apacs.org.uk.