‘Serious security incident’ halts services for customers of Northern California credit union
Nearly half a million customers of a Bay Area credit union with reach across California were unable this weekend to access their money including making purchases or checking their balances online due to a “serious security incident,” the company told customers.
Patelco Credit Union — based in Dublin, Alameda County, with several locations in the capital region — said it shut down “some of our day-to-day banking systems,” in the wake of the incident, the company’s president said in an email to customers on Sunday. What the incident was not disclosed.
In the email, Patelco CEO and President Erin Mendez wrote that the credit union has been working with cybersecurity experts since Saturday to understand the incident and restore online services, but it was still unclear when the problem would be resolved.
“We are writing to let you know that on June 29, we experienced a serious security incident. This required us to shut down some of our day-to-day banking systems so that we can remediate the issue and contain the impact, including online banking, our mobile App, and our call center,” Mendez wrote. “Currently, electronic transactions such as transfers (including Zelle), direct deposit, balance inquiries, and payments are unavailable.”
Mendez also said “debit and credit card transactions function in a limited capacity.” Customers on social media complained that they were unable to make withdraws and debit transactions at certain ATMs and vendors. The company responded to them on X that some ATMs within the credit union’s larger Co-Op network should be available including “over 30,000 shared branch ATMs in the U.S.”
In the social media posts, the company admits “Unfortunately, we are unable to provide an ETA on when those systems will be running as expected.”
Patelco did not respond to a request for comment Sunday. The credit union, which began as a financial institution for workers of Pacific Bell, has locations in Arden Arcade, Elk Grove, Folsom, Citrus Heights, and Roseville.
The company said its 33 branches in the Bay Area and capital region would be open Monday and “ready to assist as much as they can during our regular business hours.”
Customers online seemed unmoved by the responses.
A customer on Reddit said the outage had started around 7 a.m. and that only some customers can use ATMs from “branch partners.” “What are we supposed to do besides reporting it to the NCUA?” the customer asked online, referring to the National Credit Union Administration, which insures deposits at credit unions much like the FDIC does for commercial banks.
One customer on X said “It shouldn’t have taken your team 36 hours to respond with an official statement. Also — no mention of the safety of our assets? Ridiculous.”
The company has continued to respond to customers via its web platforms: “Rest assured our teams are working to get this taken care of for our members as quickly as possible. We understand this is an inconvenience, and we offer our sincerest apologies.”
Patelco is nonprofit credit union founded in 1936 with more than 456,000 members “primarily in and around Northern California” with around $9 billion in assets, according to the company.
