Bank data theft: David Chong isn't surprised

Singapore

SINCE yesterday morning, David Chong, founder of Portcullis TrustNet group, Asia's biggest independent group of trust companies, has been getting calls about the theft of Standard Chartered Bank clients' data.

And he is not surprised, although the StanChart case is not related to what happened at Portcullis earlier this year - when a breach saw client data posted on the website of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).

"The StanChart case has nothing to do with us, but I'm not surprised," said Mr Chong yesterday. "It's not the first time, and it won't be the last. Many private banks have had their data stolen, including LGT, UBS, Credit Suisse, Julius Baer, and HSBC. If the US government could not prevent its national security data from being stolen, the rest of us (with fewer resour…