Small business owners applying for coronavirus aid may have had personal info exposed in data breach, Bank of America says
It’s unclear how many small business owners may have been impacted
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The personal information of small business owners applying for government-backed coronavirus relief was potentially exposed to other lenders when it was submitted to the Small Business Administration’s test application portal, Bank of America said in a letter to impacted customers.
Bank of America, in a letter first obtained by TechNadu, alerted Paycheck Protection Program applicants of a possible data breach that could have exposed their personal information, including Social Security number, name, address, phone number, email address and citizenship status.
Bank of America declined to comment. It’s unclear how many small business owners may have been impacted.
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On April 22, the bank uploaded some small business owners’ application information to the SBA’s pilot application platform, which was designed to let PPP lenders test the application process prior to the actual submission process, according to the letter. Although small businesses apply for the aid through banks, the SBA guarantees those loans and must authorize each one via its electronic guarantee system, known as "E-Tran.”
Once the bank realized that other authorized lenders and their vendors may be able to see applicant information, it requested and confirmed the removal of the information from the SBA’s test website, it said.
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“It is critical to note that there is no indication that any of the participating lenders or their vendors viewed or misused your information,” the letter said. “The Bank requested and confirmed the removal of the information from the SBA’s test website the same day.”
Businesses that may have been affected were notified by the bank and offered two free years of an identity theft protection program.
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So far, the bank has processed more than 305,000 federally backed loans, offering more than $25 billion to small businesses getting crushed by the coronavirus pandemic, according to the letter. Bank of America said the potential breach did not affect the actual submission process.
At the heart of the massive economic relief package that Congress signed at the end of March was the Paycheck Program, which offered low-interest loans to businesses with fewer than 500 workers. If at least 75 percent of the money was spent on maintaining payroll, the federal government will forgive the loan.