Systems are back up and running at Commonwealth Bank after several hours of connectivity problems caused ATMs, ETFPOS and internet banking systems to crash.
Furious consumers turned to the internet to voice complaints that they could not access their money. Many are concerned that cash may have gone missing from their account due to glitches caused by the network failure.
The Bank’s website reported "issues with our NetBank, ATM and EFTPOS services" which were described as "related to network connectivity problems". Later in the evening, a muted message on Twitter noted that "We are very sorry for the impact to your evening".
Businesses, already at loggerheads with major banks about their refusal to drop credit card rates, were also hit when many customers found themselves unable to pay for gifts.
It is an unhappy coincidence for the bank, who suffered similar problems on the same day last year. Networking problems in August, meanwhile, saw Commonwealth Bank customers unable to use debit or credit cards at ATMs or EFTPOS for 5-6 hours.
Customers reported that the Bank’s customer service lines were unable to handle the volume of calls.
Have you been affected by the network problems? Are you fed up with unreliable access to your money? Are you considering changing your bank account as a result? Let us know!
Kate Guthrie
