Benny Higgins, Chief Executive, Tesco Bank said:

“Tesco Bank can confirm that, over the weekend, some of its customers’ current accounts have been subject to online criminal activity, in some cases resulting in money being withdrawn fraudulently. 

“We apologise for the worry and inconvenience that this has caused for customers, and can only stress that we are taking every step to protect our customers’ accounts. As a precautionary measure, we took the decision on Sunday 6 November 2016 to temporarily stop online transactions from current accounts. This will only affect current account customers. While online debit transactions will not be available, current account customers will still be able to use their cards for cash withdrawals, chip and pin payments, and all existing bill payments and direct debits will continue as normal. We are working hard to resume normal service on current accounts as soon as possible.

“We can reassure customers that any financial loss as a result of this activity will be resolved fully by Tesco Bank. This afternoon we began the process of refunding all customer current accounts that have been subjected to online criminal activity and we expect this process to be completed by the end of tomorrow.  

“We continue to work with the authorities and regulators to address the fraud and will keep our customers informed through regular updates on this website, Twitter and Your Community.

“If customers have any concerns at all, we would advise them to contact our customer service team who will be able to provide assistance.”