FORT SMITH (KFSM) — A small amount of Arvest Bank accounts were affected in a merchant data breach during the Christmas holiday, according to the bank’s president.
Several Arvest customers told 5NEWS they had unauthorized charges on their accounts at locations in Texas. A merchant data breach means account information was stolen from a specific merchant, not the bank.
President Rodney Shepard said about one-tenth of one percent of the bank’s accounts have been affected by the breach. Arvest is aware of the issue and is working with customers to get their money back.
He advised customers to monitor the activity on their accounts for suspicious transactions.
“What we have seen in the past in other [merchant] breaches, obviously customers and financial institutions are impacted and it is further into the investigation where it is determined what merchant or merchants have been compromised,” Shepard said.
He also noted both debit and credit Visa customers are protected against fraudulent activity through Visa’s zero liability policy.
While Target’s 2013 breach made headlines because of the nearly 70 million customers who were affected, Shepard said small merchant data breaches, like the one affecting some Arvest customers, happen often during the holidays.
Arvest said other banks in the region have also been affected by the merchant breach, so they also recommend those who don’t bank with Arvest check their accounts.
