Wells Fargo is in the hot seat over an alleged massive data breach that is said to have occurred in early July, according to a report by New York Times Dealb%k.
As reported by Dealb%k, a lawyer for a former Wells Fargo employee subpoenaed the bank and, in response, received “a vast trove of confidential information about tens of thousands of the bank’s wealthiest clients.” Most of them were clients of Wells Fargo Advisors.
The New York Times adds that, when reached, a spokeswoman for Wells Fargo Advisors released this statement on Friday: “Wells Fargo takes the security and privacy of our customers’ information seriously. We are investigating this matter and will take the proper steps based on the outcome of our investigation.”
As reported by Bloomberg, “Regulators have started asking questions about the breach, according to a person with knowledge of the matter […].” Bloomberg adds that the source notes representatives of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) have “informally contacted at least one of the attorneys involved in the dispute for information about how the breach occurred and how Wells Fargo failed to detect it […].”
However, as of Monday morning, U.S. regulators such as FINRA and the SEC haven’t yet commented on the matter, says Bloomberg.