Toronto-based Simplii Financial, a direct banking brand within the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), and Toronto-based Bank of Montreal (BMO) both announced on Monday possible security breaches.
Simplii Financial received a claim on May 27 that “fraudsters may have electronically accessed certain personal and account information for approximately 40,000 of Simplii’s clients,” the bank says in a news release.
Simplii Financial has advised clients that it has implemented additional online security measures, such as online fraud monitoring and online banking security measures. Furthermore, Simplii will be reaching out to clients proactively through all channels.
“We’re taking this claim seriously and have taken action to further enhance our monitoring and security procedures,” says Michael Martin, senior vice president of Simplii Financial, in a statement. “We feel that it is important to inform clients so that they can also take additional steps to safeguard their information.”
The bank is recommending clients monitor their accounts for unusual activity and always use a complex password and pin.
A spokesperson for Simplii says CIBC has not been affected by the potential security issues.
Similarly, BMO says in a news releases that “fraudsters contacted BMO claiming that they were in possession of certain personal and financial information for a limited number of customers.”
The firm believes the attack was originated from outside of Canada.
BMO took immediate steps to protect customer data and are proactively contacting customers who may have been impacted.