By Chris Zappone
Update: Police have issued a warning after reports that more than 40 Commonwealth Bank ATMs have been dispensing large amounts of cash.
Police are unsure at this stage what has caused the fault and are liaising with the Commonwealth Bank, which has been hit all day by a technical glitch that has disrupted its online banking, ATMs and EFTPOS services.
A spokeswoman for CommBank said the issue had been resolved and the bank will seek to recover any money overdrawn by customers.
"During the course of the day some customers have reported withdrawing up to their daily card limits via ATMs," said spokeswoman Nichole Willson. "These transactions will be progressively processed to customer accounts now that all services have been restored."
"Where accounts have been overdrawn, the bank will seek to recover those funds," she said.
"The CBA apologises for the inconvenience this essential maintenance may have caused some customers," Ms Willson said.
"Any fees or charges as a result of this issue will be fully refunded," she said.
Earlier, a Commonwealth Bank spokesman said the problem started after a "maintenance issue" overnight which sent the ATMs into what was called "stand-in" mode.
"The ATM doesn't have visibility over a customer's balance," the spokesman said.
"They could take out $500 even if there was only $100 in their account."
The problem appeared to be confined to Sydney, although Victoria Police said they were reports of the problem affecting ATMs in Victoria.
The bank spokesman said "we hope our customers do the right thing and return the cash".
If they did not, the bank knew the details of the transactions and would contact those customers.
The maintenance issue also affected Netbank, the bank's internet banking service, but had now been fixed, the spokesman said.
"Simply closing down the ATM network nationally is not something we would do. We are hoping customers do the right thing."
Criminal offence
Police would not say where the ATMs were located, however Detective Superintendent Col Dyson, Commander of the New South Wales Crime Command's Fraud Squad, warned that was a criminal offence to keep excess money dispensed from an ATM.
He said excess cash must be returned to the bank and that anyone keeping money wrongly dispensed is committing a criminal offence.
The ATM locations were covered extensively by surveillance, police said.
A Victoria Police spokeswoman said there were reports circulating of similar problems with the bank’s ATMs issuing extra cash in the state.
‘‘They are just rumours at this stage,’’ the spokeswoman said. She echoed her NSW counterparts, saying individuals who received excessive funds ‘‘could face criminal procedures’’ if they don’t return the money.
The technical problem has been causing headaches for customers for most of the day.
“This morning some customers are experiencing difficulties when making a funds transfer through our NetBank, CommSee, Bpay and phone banking channels,” a spokeswoman for the bank confirmed. “Some point of sale systems and ATMs are also impacted.” CommSee is the bank's customer management system.
CommBank said customers who need to transfer funds urgently should visit their local branch, “where they can carry out the transaction which will be processed when full service is restored”.
The bank blamed the disruption on an issue encountered last night during routine database maintenance.
“The CBA is working to restore service as a matter urgency,” she said. “Full service is expected to resume this afternoon.”
System woes
The Commonwealth Bank is the latest bank to report problems with its online operations. NAB yesterday conceded that some customers may still have unintended transactions made on their accounts after its system crashed at the end of last year.
One CommBank customer complained that when he called the customer service number, he could not get through to a representative.
“The recorded voice states they are too busy, please call back later, then it hangs up on you,” he said.
Another customer reported a range of issues related to CommBank’s computer systems in recent days.
“Yesterday I found out that my online application for a credit card, which was almost approved…had suddenly disappeared,” said a Sydney-based customer who gave his name only as Peter.
Staff were unable to locate the application and told him to resubmit the information online, he said.
Commonwealth Bank, as with all of Australia’s major banks, is undergoing a multi-million dollar, multi-year upgrade of its core banking system. The technological upgrade is aimed at increasing efficiency and lowering the cost of doing business for the banks.
The upgrades also reflect the increase in the number of transactions per customer, as consumers seek around-the-clock access to their accounts online and via their mobile phones.
czappone@fairfax.com.au with Chalpat Sonti and Stephanie Gardiner