Not upheld: data protection and privacy breach; complaint investigation handling complaint against THE ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY (RBS)

Decision detail

Summary

Mr F complained that RBS failed to protect his private account information when another customer was able to view his account details through an interview room window during a branch visit. RBS investigated and upheld the complaint but disputed details of what occurred. The parties disagreed about whether the third party was deliberately trying to view information or merely glanced into the room. RBS paid £500 in compensation and reconfigured the interview room to prevent future visibility of screens. The ombudsman found that without available CCTV footage, the facts could not be definitively established, but RBS had appropriately acknowledged the privacy risk, taken corrective action, and paid reasonable compensation. No evidence of actual data breach or fraudulent activity was found.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman acknowledged conflicting recollections about what happened in branch but noted that CCTV was no longer available to verify the facts. However, RBS accepted that the interview room layout created a risk of information visibility and had taken corrective action by reconfiguring the room so the computer screen was no longer visible from outside. The ombudsman found that RBS's compensation of £500, broken down as £250 for distress and inconvenience, £100 for poor investigation, £100 for investigation delay, and £50 for paying compensation without consent, was fair and reasonable. The ombudsman noted no evidence of actual data breach or fraudulent activity and found RBS had taken the complaint seriously through its remedial actions.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website