Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank), one of Nigeria’s largest and most prominent banks, has addressed recent concerns regarding an alleged web domain hack. Reports emerged suggesting that hackers had seized and cloned the bank’s website to intercept customer data.
In a statement released on Thursday, GTBank described the incident as an “isolated attempt” to compromise its website domain. The bank clarified that its website had not been cloned and that customer data remains secure. The statement emphasized:
“Our attention has been drawn to media reports 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. As such, there has been no compromise of customer data.”
The bank assured stakeholders that its team of Information Security Experts is working diligently to address and resolve the situation. Customers were urged to disregard the media claims and trust in the bank’s commitment to safeguarding their data.
Speculation surrounding the incident suggested that on the night of August 14, 2024, suspected cybercriminals may have compromised GTBank’s web domain, making gtbank.com temporarily inaccessible. This event occurred just a day after the domain name was renewed for another five years, from August 13, 2024, through March 21, 2029. There has been no official claim of responsibility from any hacking group.
GTBank reassured its customers and stakeholders of its unwavering commitment to data security and encouraged them to remain confident in the bank’s security measures.
