This type of blunder should not have happened in the first place if proper SQL Joins and Referential Integrity was used. Regulation is now needed so that only Software Engineering Major and Computer Science Major with SQL Module are allowed to develop such critical applications.

As a result of yet-unspecified problems, over a five-day period, customers were locked out of their accounts and experienced money disappearing from accounts. Some were even able to see other customers’ accounts.

But the small matter of moving millions of existing customers from legacy systems to the new platform is the task that has put banks off modernising for years. TSB has bitten the bullet – but did it bite off more than it could chew?
Source: https://www.computerweekly.com/news/252439859/TSB-IT-meltdown-has-the-makings-of-an-epic

Some current account customers and some business clients still face problems making internet or app payments.

The bank said experts from computing giant IBM, called in during the first week of the fiasco, would remain "for as long as it takes" to fix the errors.

It has not estimated how long it will be until services return to normal.

The ongoing problems come in a week when some customers have reported fraudsters emptying their accounts. In addition, some customers who have switched away from the bank have reported receiving letters suggesting they have died.

TSB left man on hold as his wedding savings were stolen

TSB said it had teams "working around the clock" to fix the issues which began after the migration of data on TSB's five million customers from former owner Lloyds' IT system to a new one managed by current TSB owner Sabadell.

Among the most serious are the payment problems faced by business banking customers, such as Sam Watterson, who runs a lettings firm in Leeds.

He has spent recent weeks manually entering details into a spreadsheet, as it is impossible to download a file from his account. He is also struggling to set up new payments to landlords.

"This is creating a backlog of payments. We are muddling through, but it is taking forever to do something simple," he said.

He said he had reported the issues to TSB but had not heard anything back.

"We are asking business banking customers, who may be experiencing problems making payments online, to contact us so we can help them meet their payment obligations, such as salaries and invoicing to suppliers," a spokeswoman for TSB said.

"We are really sorry for any inconvenience this may cause and we understand how challenging the past few weeks may have been for some of our business customers. No customer will be left out of pocket as a result of any issues experienced."

New cases
On Friday, BBC Radio 4's You and Yours revealed how one TSB customer watched thousands of pounds in wedding savings being stolen from his internet account as he waited on hold for the bank's fraud department.

Ben Alford, from Weymouth in Dorset, said it took more than four and a half hours to get through to TSB, by which time most of the money had gone. TSB said it had put in "additional resources" to support customers.

Financial website Moneysavingexpert also reported how some customers had received letters incorrectly suggesting account holders had died.

Several former TSB customers reported receiving letters from various organisations including local councils saying they were sorry to hear of their passing. The letters also said that their direct debits had been cancelled. Customers had then got in contact with those who had sent them the letters, and been informed that TSB had told them that they had died.

"We are aware there was an issue with a small number of our customers switching from or closing their account with TSB, which resulted in an error in the cancellation or transfer of some of their direct debits," a TSB spokeswoman said.

"We are deeply sorry for any distress caused. We are working to rectify this issue and we are really sorry for the inconvenience caused."

Text message balance alerts, such as when customers are going into the red, are not working.

Meanwhile, some customers are receiving redress.

The case of Lorna Connolly, formerly Lorna McHale, was raised with TSB chief executive Paul Pester during his appearance before the Treasury Committee of MPs after the BBC revealed how she was unable to access her account days before her wedding day.

She said she had to "ring to grovel" with suppliers for the wedding, including the DJ, the wedding car provider, and those doing her hair and make-up, all of which were small businesses.

TSB rang the day before her wedding to offer her compensation.

"They gave me £100 as a gesture of goodwill, which didn't really alleviate any of the stress, but I was flustered and just accepted," she said.

She said her account was mostly back to normal - a conclusion yet to be the case for every TSB customer.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-44253335

^ ^ But how could referential integrity be exposed ?

^^ You'll need to carry out some research. I have updated original post to include proper SQL Joins.

This year's most significant banking software failure serves as a stark reminder of the importance of robust and reliable IT solutions in the banking sector https://www.luxoft.com/industries/banking . To avoid such mishaps, financial institutions should prioritize thorough testing, continuous monitoring, and regular updates for their banking IT services and solutions. This incident underscores the need for a proactive approach to technology management to ensure the seamless operation of critical financial systems.