First Data Fixes Processing Outage in 45 Minutes (Dec. 7, 2015)
Hardware issues are to blame for a brief outage of First Data’s ability to process certain credit and debit cards last Friday, according to reports. The number of transactions affected wasn’t immediately known; however, the Atlanta-based processor said the problem began at 6:45 a.m. EST and was restored by 7:30 a.m. “First Data’s technical support teams identified and contained the issue and card authorizations have now been fully restored,” the company said in a statement. The situation wasn’t the result of a cyberattack or any other type of unauthorized intrusion, the spokesperson added. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. and SunTrust Banks Inc. are two financial institutions whose cards were affected by the outage, according to reports.
