Lloyds Banking Group has revealed that a software defect in its mobile banking apps exposed the personal data of nearly 500,000 customers, according to a letter published by MPs on Friday. The glitch, which occurred overnight on 12 March, affected the Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland apps, leaving payments, account details and national insurance numbers visible to other users.
The bank said the issue was caused by a software update and that customers would have had to be viewing their app within fractions of a second of others to access the data. However, up to 447,936 customers were potentially able to see private information, and 114,182 people clicked into transactions that revealed sensitive details. Even non-Lloyds customers may have had their transaction data exposed.
Lloyds reported itself to the Financial Conduct Authority on the morning of 12 March and notified the Information Commissioner’s Office within 72 hours. Jasjyot Singh, the bank's chief executive of consumer relationships, said there was no evidence of misuse, but urged customers to delete any recorded or shared information. The bank has paid £139,000 in compensation to 3,625 customers for distress, with no financial losses reported.
The incident has raised questions about customer protections as banks push more users into digital services. Meg Hillier, chair of the Treasury committee, highlighted the trade-off between convenience and technology risks. Singh assured the committee that Lloyds would complete its analysis and update processes, with further updates scheduled for April and September.
