Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) has confirmed an attempted hacking incident on its website, addressing recent media reports that claimed hackers had seized and cloned the bank’s website, intercepting customer data.
The hacking attempt occurred just a day after the bank renewed its domain name, causing a temporary disruption to the website, which left customers unable to access online services.
This led to widespread concern and media reports suggesting that the bank’s website had been cloned, potentially putting customer data at risk.
In a statement released on Thursday, the bank clarified that while there was an isolated attempt to compromise its website domain, the website had not been cloned, and no customer data was at risk.
We don’t’ store customer information on our website, GTBank says
GTBank assured its customers and stakeholders that the bank does not store customer information on its website, thereby eliminating the possibility of any data compromise. The bank emphasized that the reports circulating in the media were inaccurate and should be disregarded.
The statement noted that the bank’s Information Security Experts are currently working round the clock to restore domain settings.
GTBank also reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to safeguarding customer data, urging customers to remain calm and confident in the bank’s robust security measures.
The statement read: “Our attention has been drawn to reports in the media alleging that hackers have seized the Bank’s website, cloned it and intercepted customer data.
“While there was an isolated incident of an attempt to compromise our website domain, we would like to assure all our Customers and Stakeholders that the Bank’s website has not been cloned and that we do not store customer information on our website, and as such, there has been no instance of compromise of customer data.
“Our dedicated team of Information Security Experts are currently working round the clock to restore domain settings, and we can assure our customers that our website will be up shortly.
“We urge all our Customers to please disregard the claims in these media reports and assure you of our unwavering commitment to safeguarding customer data.”
What you should know
Recent reports about the hacking attempt on Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) sparked widespread concern, particularly after some news outlets suggested that the bank’s website had been seized by hackers, potentially compromising customer data.
The incident reportedly began on the night of August 14, 2024, just a day after GTBank renewed its domain name for another five years.
Some reports claimed that the hackers had created a fake version of the GTBank website to carry out a phishing operation aimed at stealing customer information.
This led to a flurry of customer complaints on social media, particularly on X (formerly Twitter), where users reported being unable to access the bank’s website to conduct transactions.
This incident highlights the growing threat of cyberattacks on financial institutions in Nigeria, where hackers increasingly target bank websites to steal data through phishing schemes and other malicious activities.
However, GTBank’s mobile applications on Android and iOS devices remained functional during this period.