Data on more than a million customers of SunTrust Banks Inc. has been stolen. The heist was an inside job.
Atlanta-based SunTrust said on Friday that it is offering all of its existing and new consumer customers identity protection at no cost on an ongoing basis.
Clients who sign up for the service will be provided with Experian IDnotify, according to SunTrust, which “cares deeply about the privacy and security of client information.”
In addition to
Experian 1B Credit Monitoring, the service includes an annual Experian credit report, $1 million in identity theft insurance, and identity restoration assistance. It also includes dark web monitoring.
But the offer isn’t a gesture of benevolence.
SunTrust said that it has become aware of the potential theft of client information. The culprit: a former employee.
According to the bank-holding company, which is conducting an investigation, the former employee stole information from some of its contact lists. Information that might have been exposed includes names, addresses, phone numbers and certain account balances.
However,
the breach didn’t include personally identifying information like social security numbers, account numbers or PINs. Also not exposed were user IDs, passwords or driver’s license information.
SunTrust said it has notified around 1.5 million clients about the data breach, and it is working with outside experts as well as coordinating with law enforcement.
“We apologize to clients who may have been affected by this,” SunTrust Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bill Rogers said in today’s statement. “We have heightened our monitoring of accounts and increased other security measures. While we have not identified significant fraudulent activity, we will reinforce our promise to clients that they will not be held responsible for any loss on their accounts as a result.”
