Bob L.
Awesome people at the mercy of a very flawed internet!
I have much praise for the personnel at the various branches and they go our of their way to make us feel valued. A "hometown" bank is very important to us. But (the big "but"), there have been so many occurrences of hacking and fraud through the years that this months "Fraud Alert" is just too much to bear. In fairness, every institution is facing these threats, so I really hate to single out MCB. On the other hand, the funds entrusted to the bank are maybe the most important funds we have because they represent our budget and keeping current with our creditors (like the our mortgage holder). Whether or not the money is protected by the FDIC is immaterial. The disruption the loss of access to our accounts, or the potential loss of our money would be devastating in the short term. It appears that I was targeted in this latest rampage by hooligans. Already wary of using my smartphone to do finacial transactions, a week or so ago I was prompted to update my password during a login attempt. The reason given was a recent upgrade to the MCB security system (paraphrased). Tonight, on my computer, the new password was rejected. That sent chills up my spine. When the old password worked, I was sure I'd been hacked. And, just because I do not see tampering today does not mean it will not happen. I changed my credentials, but will not sleep well tonight. I may be on the lookout for some clean coffee cans.
Response from Mechanics Cooperative BankJul 25, 2023
Dear Mr. LeRoyer, thank you for taking the time to share your positive feedback about the staff at our various branches. We are delighted to hear that they have consistently made you feel valued and that our bank has become your trusted hometown bank! We understand your concerns regarding the occurrences of hacking and fraud that have affected the banking industry and share in your frustrations. We apologize for any inconvenience caused by the recent fraud alert and please be assured that we are committed to safeguarding your money and continuously improving and enhancing our security systems to remain on top of all forms of fraud. Regarding the prompt to update your password, this was a legitimate security measure taken to further protect your account. A member of our team will be reaching out to assist and answer any questions you have regarding your account and our online banking platform. We thank you for choosing Mechanics Cooperative Bank as your trusted banking partner. We appreciate your feedback, and we will continue striving to exceed your expectations.