Santander stopping alerts - why would they do that?

UncleK

True, though it shouldn't matter if I'm being put through to a human anyway. I checked again just now and they still haven't replied 😒

Same here..........

Jabba_flabba

UncleK said:

True, though it shouldn't matter if I'm being put through to a human anyway. I checked again just now and they still haven't replied 😒

Same here..........

I finally got someone on chat to register my complaint, but it was torturous. Almost minded to complain about the complaints process, but then it would be yet more pain. How hard can it be to register one's disapproval of a change?

Scotjock

boingy said:

uk1 said:

... and software is increasingly maintained and developed with an increasing use of AI.  

None of the "traditional" banks are using AI to maintain those old systems. They are using aging software engineers and out-sourcing the simpler stuff to places like India. I have a good friend who works in this area for Barclays. He'll be retiring in a few years and fears for the future of that system, because there are not many softies around who can maintain that stuff. If you know anything about software languages you'd be shocked at what some of their systems are still coded in - languages that have not been taught for 30 or 40 years but that still form the core of some banking systems.

Banking systems are a slow changing thing. Just look at Virgin who have tried and failed to merge the various banking systems that they bought (or that bought them). Nationwide will be continuing that particular challenge. 20+ years ago I played golf with a chap who was part of the techie team at Royal Bank of Scotland tasked with integrating the newly-acquired NatWest system into their own. They were shocked at the state of that system. He described it as much worse than their most pessimistic expectations.

So all those groovy apps and web pages are often sitting on top of a vehicle with a wooden chassis running on leaf-sprung solid tyres. The bonnet may even be held down with a leather strap. Don't have nightmares...   

This is so true and rightly scary - if it ain't broke don't fix it... well it does break but someone knows how to fix it... wait where has jim gone...

Scotjock

Jabba_flabba said:

Yesterday morning I tried to register a complaint about the changes via their Chat, and it wasn't very fruitful. I suspect if I'd chosen the 'I need to speak to someone now' option rather than 'Something else' I would have been able to register my complaint verbally, but frankly I'd prefer to stick with Chat. 

Here's a screenshot from when I checked the Chat just now. AFAICT, the chat never got handed off to a human, but time will tell if this gets picked up. In the old days, you could simply send them a Secure Message - I can still see the messages I sent them 10 years ago. Not sure when that stopped being an option.

Why did you choose something else - the option was right there to raise a new issue?

Scotjock

WillPS said:

Jabba_flabba said:

Yesterday morning I tried to register a complaint about the changes via their Chat, and it wasn't very fruitful. I suspect if I'd chosen the 'I need to speak to someone now' option rather than 'Something else' I would have been able to register my complaint verbally, but frankly I'd prefer to stick with Chat. 

Here's a screenshot from when I checked the Chat just now. AFAICT, the chat never got handed off to a human, but time will tell if this gets picked up. In the old days, you could simply send them a Secure Message - I can still see the messages I sent them 10 years ago. Not sure when that stopped being an option.

Surely "I want to raise a new issue" is the one for a new complaint?

Yeah something else in bot terms is i think this is what you need but I'm not sure

Jjkwh

Section62 said:

Jjkwh said:

I wonder if the alerts rely on SMS rather than RCS messaging. Reason being SMS uses  2g and mobile operators are talking of switching off 2g in some areas as early as this year. 

Jjkwh said:

..even if it can be done with 4g could be a connection...

Santander will continue to send some text messages - they are only stopping some options.  So if there was some kind of 2G switchoff issue then either Santander have already found a workaround, or else they aren't being truthful when they say SMS will continue to be available for the (regulatory) messages (and OTP's).

Except that the regulatory ones carry less risk as if they have to stop they can blame ofcom for allowing 2g to be switched off so soon. The alerts are an extra service. 

uk1

Jjkwh said:

Section62 said:

Jjkwh said:

I wonder if the alerts rely on SMS rather than RCS messaging. Reason being SMS uses  2g and mobile operators are talking of switching off 2g in some areas as early as this year. 

Jjkwh said:

..even if it can be done with 4g could be a connection...

Santander will continue to send some text messages - they are only stopping some options.  So if there was some kind of 2G switchoff issue then either Santander have already found a workaround, or else they aren't being truthful when they say SMS will continue to be available for the (regulatory) messages (and OTP's).

Except that the regulatory ones carry less risk as if they have to stop they can blame ofcom for allowing 2g to be switched off so soon. The alerts are an extra service. 

I’m confused about the discussion regarding 2g.

As far as I can see this doesn’t affect the sending of SMS messages, it just means that those with very old phones won’t receive them but the vast majority of customers do not have 2g phones.  

And email alerts should reach everyone that has requested them. 

Section62

Jjkwh said:

Section62 said:

Jjkwh said:

I wonder if the alerts rely on SMS rather than RCS messaging. Reason being SMS uses  2g and mobile operators are talking of switching off 2g in some areas as early as this year. 

Jjkwh said:

..even if it can be done with 4g could be a connection...

Santander will continue to send some text messages - they are only stopping some options.  So if there was some kind of 2G switchoff issue then either Santander have already found a workaround, or else they aren't being truthful when they say SMS will continue to be available for the (regulatory) messages (and OTP's).

Except that the regulatory ones carry less risk as if they have to stop they can blame ofcom for allowing 2g to be switched off so soon. The alerts are an extra service. 

I don't follow your logic.

You've suggested the proposed 2G switchoff might have something to do with Santander's decision.  But if it did, then they would have to stop all text alerts, not just the types they are stopping.

And 2G has nothing at all to do with the email alerts which are also being stopped.

UncleK

I've just had a call back from Santander's complaints department. An intelligent and respectful conversation, even though nothing will change. Explanation given was that the text and email alerts are getting too subject to fraud as scammers ramp up attempts to impersonate them. She also said that customisable alerts are also planned for the Santander app, although no date on that.
When I asked why not wait until the app is ready until stopping the text and email alerts, she saw my point but they are keen to stop the text and emails. (Of course, they still have to do the mandatory ones - that didn't come up in conversation.)
When I asked why not tell us the real reason for the stopping of the alerts (i.e. security) she said that isn't the kind of thing they like to broadcast.
I am just repeating what was said - you can beat me up or give it why-oh-why if you like - but I am just reporting.
However, I think it is still worth others complaining - she said I was not the first, and the more we whinge, the better the chance of the alerts actually happening in the app, and maybe the priority increasing.
Message ends 

uk1

UncleK said:

I've just had a call back from Santander's complaints department. An intelligent and respectful conversation, even though nothing will change. Explanation given was that the text and email alerts are getting too subject to fraud as scammers ramp up attempts to impersonate them. She also said that customisable alerts are also planned for the Santander app, although no date on that.
When I asked why not wait until the app is ready until stopping the text and email alerts, she saw my point but they are keen to stop the text and emails. (Of course, they still have to do the mandatory ones - that didn't come up in conversation.)
When I asked why not tell us the real reason for the stopping of the alerts (i.e. security) she said that isn't the kind of thing they like to broadcast.
I am just repeating what was said - you can beat me up or give it why-oh-why if you like - but I am just reporting.
However, I think it is still worth others complaining - she said I was not the first, and the more we whinge, the better the chance of the alerts actually happening in the app, and maybe the priority increasing.
Message ends 

I’m obviously clearly getting dimmer as I get older. 

When I get an email from Santander alerting me that my wife has taken a few quid out of our account as a part of her secret stash fund, there is no link in the email to take me to my account.  Which I wouldn't click if it was there. So I delete the email and go to the account app and check.

I cannot grasp how this email alert can lead to any scam other than those scam emails that might mimic the email - but I have not yet actually received one or heard of one that mimicked the debit alert.  And if there had been then to be scammed you’d have to dumbly hit the link.  But there wasn’t one.  We’d know because Santander or The Daily  Mail  would have warned us. 

But if you deleted all good initiatives because some people dumbly follow imbedded links then virtually everything helpful would be deleted because everything has the potential to contain links.  They haven’t deleted all their marketing of new products stuff which normally DOES contain convenient links have they?

Jeff