I refer to your email of the 16th November in which you address my concerns over the lack of security software support during the first three weeks of October. I see that you have decided that as NatWest did not publish the software itself, it bears no responsibility for any shortcomings. However, under the doctrine of “duty of care” I would have thought for you to completely abdicate responsibility is quite foolhardy. After all, this software was paid for by NatWest, and was made available to its customers through its website. So I don’t understand how you can take this attitude. If you absolutely intend to hold onto this principle, then I will, of course, take it up with the Financial Ombudsman Service. However, please be aware that I will also be making this issue very public in the National newspapers too.
The issue is that on the day that Apple released their latest OS, El Capitan, the IBM Trusteer Rapport software was incompatible with the new OS. No notification was given to the NatWest users of this desperate situation. Furthermore, on the 21st October IBM released a new version that was finally compatible. However, this was not made available to the users as the new OS had nullified the previous version. I only became aware of this when, on the same day, the 21st October (by coincidence), I realised that the IBM Trusteer Rapport icon was missing from the toolbar of Safari. I downloaded a new version of the software, and contacted IBM to find out how this had occurred. I have attached a transcript of my conversation with IBM below.
My concern is that all those parties who use Macs, and who have upgraded to El Capitan since the 30th September, are now unprotected by IBM Trusteer Rapport software, and unless they become self aware, as I did, they will never find out that they need a brand new software installation. NatWest and IBM have not seen fit to make contact with them to reveal this information, and I think this is despicable.
You cannot abdicate responsibility by merely stating the software was provided by a third party. It was downloaded directly from your own website. Does’t that make you responsible?
I have approached IBM on this issue too, but their response was only this:
"As mentioned in the chat session, Rapport started to support OS X El Capitan since the 21st of October.
We would like to thank you once more for your feedback, we have forwarded it to the relevant departments.”
We would like to thank you once more for your feedback, we have forwarded it to the relevant departments.”
If you think that this reaction to such a serious matter is acceptable, then you are very mistaken. Please address these points with the seriousness it deserves. We are dealing with a matter of banking security, and for NatWest and IBM to abdicate responsibility is monstrous, and the National newspapers will be all over you unless you deal with it with the respect and urgency it deserves.
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