A female “specialist” of the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), who owned up to the computer glitch that the bank reported last June 7, had been reassigned to another area, an official revealed at a Senate hearing on Wednesday.

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BPI Executive Vice President Ramon Jocson did not identify the female specialist, except saying that she topped her programming class and that she was one of 12 people who are trained in the bank’s system, and one of two who had been given access to the system.

“The investigations had pinpointed that this particular person is to blame. This particular person has also owned up to committing the mistake,” Jocson said during the hearing of the Senate committee on banks, financial institutions, and currencies, joint with the committee on finance.

READ: BPI says ‘human error’ caused banking glitch

“As of the moment, until this (investigation) is concluded, the said person had been reassigned to another area and all access rights to her system has been taken out,” he said.

Asked by Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon if the June 7 glitch was a clear error of judgment on the part of the specialist, the bank official answered yes.

“I was a programmer once, I was young once…and this particular person has been (with us for three years). She topped her programming class so there’s always the zeal to do things faster . So I attribute this, your honor, to a lapse in judgement,” Jocson said.

When Drilon asked again if there was nothing malicious with the specialist’s action, Jocson said” “Not malicious your honor, nothing to gain at all your honor.”

Jocson pointed out that “no money was lost” even if the computer glitch had affected the accounts of 1.5 million of their 8 million clients. IDL

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