Deutsche Bank has started using tracking app Movius to monitor employees’ calls, texts, and WhatsApp conversations.
As banks face a rash of fines (or firings) for unauthorized employee communication, they are choosing to shell out for tech tools to monitor popular chat apps like WhatsApp instead of stopping workers from using them.
Deutsche Bank started using Movius, a US mobile app that lets compliance staff monitor employee communication with clients, amid an uptick in regulatory probes, according to The Financial Times.
Both Credit Suisse and HSBC have recently dismissed employees following investigations into workers using unapproved messaging apps with clients, and the SEC fined JPMorgan Chase $200 million for bookkeeping failures around personal devices. Tools like Movius promise to keep regulated firms compliant while allowing employees to chat with clients on their preferred channels.
Movius also counts JPMorgan, UBS, Jefferies, and Shanghai Pudong Bank as customers (and the latter went from realizing its need to deploying the tool in just 15 days). Meanwhile, a firm called Txtsmarter claims to be the only communications surveillance firm that can seamlessly monitor Apple’s iMessage.