| Recurring |
one_organization, multiple_organization |
(a) The software failure incident having happened again at one_organization:
- NatWest has been hit by its third IT glitch in nine months, with previous incidents including customers being unable to withdraw cash, pay for goods and services, and carry out banking activities [Article 17497].
(b) The software failure incident having happened again at multiple_organization:
- The RBS group, which includes RBS, NatWest, and Ulster Bank, experienced an online banking glitch that affected customers' access to their accounts, similar to previous incidents at other banks like TSB and Barclays [Article 75469]. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
design |
(a) The software failure incidents mentioned in the articles are primarily related to the design phase. In Article 17497, the failure incidents at NatWest, RBS, and Ulster Bank were attributed to technical glitches, IT errors, and botched software upgrades. For example, in June 2012, a software upgrade issue caused millions of customers to lose access to their money for over a week [17497]. Similarly, in Article 75469, the online banking glitch experienced by RBS, NatWest, and Ulster Bank was caused by a technical glitch in a regular update to their firewall applied early in the morning, affecting customers' access to their accounts [75469].
(b) The articles do not provide specific information about software failure incidents related to the operation phase. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system |
(a) The software failure incidents reported in the articles are primarily within_system failures. In Article 17497, the failure at NatWest, RBS, and Ulster Bank was caused by technical problems within their IT systems, affecting their mobile banking apps and online banking services [17497]. Similarly, in Article 75469, the issues faced by RBS, NatWest, and Ulster Bank were attributed to a "technical glitch" in a regular update to their firewall, which was an internal system update that caused the access issue for customers [75469]. These incidents highlight failures originating from within the system itself, leading to customer inconvenience and service disruptions. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident occurring due to non-human actions:
- Article 17497 reports on a technical glitch that caused customers to be locked out of their accounts, affecting NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland, and Ulster Bank. The issue was attributed to a fault that prevented people from logging into the mobile banking app, impacting both personal and business customers [17497].
- Article 75469 discusses a similar incident where customers of RBS, NatWest, and Ulster Bank were unable to access their bank accounts online due to a technical glitch in a regular update to their firewall. The update was reversed to resolve the issue, and the banks emphasized that it was an "access issue" with no evidence of customer data compromise [75469].
(b) The software failure incident occurring due to human actions:
- The articles do not specifically mention any software failure incidents caused by human actions. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
hardware, software |
(a) The software failure incident occurring due to hardware:
- Article 75469 reports that the online banking glitch experienced by RBS, NatWest, and Ulster Bank was caused by a "technical glitch" in a regular update to their firewall which was applied early on Friday morning. This hardware-related issue led to customers being locked out of their accounts until the problem was fixed [75469].
(b) The software failure incident occurring due to software:
- Article 17497 mentions that NatWest, RBS, and Ulster Bank faced an IT glitch that left customers locked out of the mobile banking app. The fault, which prevented people from logging in, was attributed to a software issue, causing inconvenience to customers [17497].
- Additionally, the same article highlights a previous incident in June 2012 where a botched software upgrade led to millions of customers being without access to their money for more than a week. This incident was also related to software problems within the banking group [17497]. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
non-malicious |
(a) The software failure incidents reported in the articles are categorized as non-malicious. The failures were attributed to technical glitches, regular updates causing issues, and access problems rather than any malicious intent to harm the system [17497, 75469]. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
poor_decisions |
(a) The software failure incidents reported in the articles seem to be more aligned with poor_decisions. The incidents were caused by technical glitches resulting from regular updates to the firewall [75469], botched software upgrades [17497], and previous IT problems [17497]. These issues indicate that poor decisions or inadequate planning in implementing updates and upgrades contributed to the failures. Additionally, the incidents led to customer dissatisfaction and raised questions about the robustness and reliability of the banks' IT systems [17497].
(b) The articles do not provide information indicating that the software failure incidents were due to accidental_decisions. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
development_incompetence, accidental |
(a) The software failure incidents reported in the articles can be attributed to development incompetence. In Article 17497, it is mentioned that NatWest experienced its third IT glitch in nine months, with previous incidents including a botched software upgrade and problems after offshoring IT jobs to India. Customers expressed frustration on social media, questioning the bank's ability to learn from past mistakes and highlighting concerns about the robustness of the bank's IT systems [17497].
Similarly, in Article 75469, RBS, NatWest, and Ulster Bank faced an online banking glitch that prevented customers from accessing their accounts due to a technical glitch in a regular update to their firewall. This incident caused frustration among customers, especially as it occurred on payday, impacting their ability to carry out financial transactions. The bank emphasized that it was an "access issue" and assured customers that their data was not compromised [75469].
(b) The software failure incidents reported in the articles can also be seen as accidental. In Article 75469, the online banking glitch experienced by RBS, NatWest, and Ulster Bank was described as a "technical glitch" in a regular update to their firewall that was applied early in the morning. The update was reversed to allow customers to access their accounts again, indicating that the issue was unintentional and not a deliberate act to disrupt the service. The banks also stated that there was no evidence of customer data being compromised during the incident [75469]. |
| Duration |
temporary |
(a) The software failure incident reported in the articles was temporary. In Article 17497, it is mentioned that the technical problems preventing customers from logging into the mobile banking app were fully resolved by noon on the same day the issue started. Similarly, in Article 75469, the online banking glitch that locked customers out of their accounts was resolved within about five hours of the problem being identified. These incidents were not permanent and were resolved relatively quickly, indicating a temporary software failure [17497, 75469]. |
| Behaviour |
crash, omission, other |
(a) crash: The articles describe incidents where customers were locked out of their accounts due to technical glitches, such as a fault in the mobile banking app [17497]. Customers were unable to access their bank accounts online for about five hours until the problem was fixed [75469].
(b) omission: Customers experienced issues where they could not access their accounts online [75469]. This omission to perform the intended function caused frustration among users, especially during payday.
(c) timing: There is no specific mention of timing-related failures in the articles.
(d) value: The articles do not mention any instances of the system performing its intended functions incorrectly.
(e) byzantine: There is no indication of the system behaving with inconsistent responses or interactions in the articles.
(f) other: The articles highlight failures related to technical glitches, regular updates causing issues, and access problems, leading to customers being unable to perform online banking activities as intended. |