DUBLIN, Calif.–Citing what it called a “serious security incident,” Patelco Credit Union said it was forced to shut down some of its online banking services over the weekend and the outage continues.
As of the time of this reporting, Patelco had posted a message to members on its website reading, “We deeply apologize for the inconvenience and frustration caused by this incident. Our branches, call center and chat will be ready to assist as much as possible during regular business hours July 1. We’ll answer your questions as best we can, but we’re unable to provide specific account details at this time.”
The $9.7-billion Patelco CU has more than 500,000 members.
Message from CEO
President and CEO Erin Mendez told members over the weekend in an email obtained by several media outlets, “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. Currently, electronic transactions such as transfers (including Zelle), direct deposit, balance inquiries, and payments are unavailable.”
Mendez’s message said the credit union has been working with cybersecurity teams since Saturday to resolve the issue and restore online services.
No timeframe for recovery or restoration was provided.
On X, Patelco told members they can access cash withdrawals and deposits at specific ATMs within the Co-op Network.
Members Interviewed in Media
NBC News Bay Area interviewed a number of members at the credit union’s headquarters on Sunday, reporting that many said they were able to withdraw cash but were not able to check account balances or make transfers.
"As a customer, I came over to a credit union because I had so much difficulty with the mainstream banks, but now that I’m having trouble with the Patelco [Credit Union] I am considering going to a major bank, I just don’t know which one I want to go to," one member told NBC News Bay Area.
Others quoted noted they have rent and other bills due, as it is the first of the month. Other members were quoted as saying they were disappointed by what they said was a lack of communication over the issue.
The outage is similar to that suffered by VyStar Credit Union in Jacksonville in 2022, where systems were down for approximately 10 days, as CUToday.info reported here. https://www.cutoday.info/Fresh-Today/Potential-Class-Action-Filed-Against-VyStar-Over-System-Outage