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Email this10:53 am
January 10, 2018
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https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/manulife-bank-customer-data-databarn-1.6787556
CBC News · Posted: Apr 03, 2023
"An insider says Manulife Bank of Canada stored customers’ private information — such as social insurance and credit card numbers — in a massive database with inadequate security protections for YEARS, potentially putting them at enormous risk.
A Manulife insider is blowing the whistle on what he says were major privacy issues within the company's Canadian banking division that have potentially put thousands of customers at risk.
Customers' bank account information and other personal details — millions of names, addresses, account details, social insurance and credit card numbers, birth dates and transactions among other things — could be widely seen in a database with few privacy protections in place — accessed by more than 100 employees and shared with an unknown number of others, he said.
"Anyone who's been a customer of Manulife bank … your data could have been taken by someone," he claimed in an interview with Go Public.
Go Public has also obtained an internal Manulife report written in the spring of 2021 that mirrors the insider's concerns. It documents data and privacy issues with that database, which at that point had existed for almost a decade.
But after upper management read the report, executives didn't want to fix the problem, says the insider, who was part of a group that sought solutions.
...
When Go Public asked whether the database met regulatory privacy requirements before concerns were outlined in the 2021 report, Manulife did not clarify"
11:44 am
October 2, 2025
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Has anything change since this insider report on Manulife Bank's Databarn database vulnerability? Did Manulife Bank secure their databases against unauthorized access or hackers? Are Manulife Bank employees sufficiently trained on data security?
Manulife Bank's fall offering of 4.75% 120 days from new Advantage account opening is appealing but I'm concerned about Manulife Bank's lack of data security practices.
5:19 pm
January 10, 2017
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Yes, it is a very legitimate concern. Manulife is an Insurance Company dabbling in Online banking. I have not heard of anything being done following this report from 2023.
However, CRA who mandates you give them all your important data has also been hacked...multiple times. I would say pretty much everyone has already had some/all of their important data stolen by now. What can we do? Check your file with the credit rating bureaus on a regular basis, change your passwords often and .......cross your fingers.
7:22 pm
October 2, 2025
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I've searched all over and could not find anything from Manulife or the media since the insider's revelation. There are a few people who claimed to have suffered major financial loss due to the 2023 Databarn database vulnerability. There is a blogger (The Cummins Accountability Project) who as recent as Sept 29 2025 advised to "take your money elsewhere".
Manulife isn’t just flawed; it’s a festering wound on the financial landscape. From data disasters to deal-making debacles, regulatory raps to relentless lawsuits, this is a corporation that’s prioritised profit over people at every turn. The global reach amplifies the damage, turning local screw-ups into international outrage. And with investments in ethically dubious players like Cummins, it’s clear: this isn’t aberration; it’s the business model. Time to wake up and demand better – or better yet, take your money elsewhere. Because if history’s any guide, Manulife won’t change until they’re forced to.
7:17 pm
March 15, 2019
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One would think (incorrectly?) that a subsidiary of a major insurance company would know how to protect client info.
10:38 pm
April 6, 2013
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Manulife Bank does know how.
According to the April 2023 CBC article, Manulife issued a statement that the database has been secured:
Manulife's global head of media relations, Luke Shane, declined an interview request, but wrote in a statement that the database "meets or exceeds regulatory requirements for privacy" and the company's internal privacy and security standards.
I'd dismiss that blog as uninformed drivel. Manulife Bank wouldn't have medical info in its databarn. Cummins Inc. (CMI) is in the S&P 500 index, around the #185 spot with a weight of 0.09%. Any US large cap stock fund, including ones run by Manulife Investment Management, will hold Cummins shares as a result.
1:47 pm
October 2, 2025
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Norman1 said
Manulife Bank does know how.According to the April 2023 CBC article, Manulife issued a statement that the database has been secured:
Manulife's global head of media relations, Luke Shane, declined an interview request, but wrote in a statement that the database "meets or exceeds regulatory requirements for privacy" and the company's internal privacy and security standards.
I'd dismiss that blog as uninformed drivel. Manulife Bank wouldn't have medical info in its databarn. Cummins Inc. (CMI) is in the S&P 500 index, around the #185 spot with a weight of 0.09%. Any US large cap stock fund, including ones run by Manulife Investment Management, will hold Cummins shares as a result.
Thanks, Norman1 for the new information on Manulife and the uninformed blog. I feel a lot better now to open an account at Manulife, didn't want to lose my life savings. Looks like the promotion is over, will wait for the next promotion before I open an account.
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