Technical glitch reveals UBS clients' details

SINGAPORE/NEW DELHI: A technical problem at Swiss banking major UBS saw clients in Singapore and Hong Kong looking at the details of other customers, when they logged in to access their online accounts, says a media report.

The Straits Times here has reported that a glitch at UBS gave its wealthy customers in Singapore and Hong Kong a shock last week when they logged on to their online accounts.

"The private-banking clients found confidential details of other clients' bank statements and account information instead of their own.

"Clients' online accounts, though, do not indicate their names," the report published online said.

Interestingly, UBS is fighting a legal battle against the US government related to disclosure of information about American account holders.

Attributing to a UBS spokesperson who confirmed the incident, the report said, "some limited account information concerning a small number of UBS wealth-management clients was accessible by a very limited number of other system users'.

Fewer than five accessed the information, she was quoted as saying. The bank immediately took steps to rectify the problem, it added.