‘Fight AI with AI’: Singapore banks warn against third-party AI agents as observers flag liability risk

[SINGAPORE] The Republic’s three major banks are warning customers against using artificial intelligence agents to access their accounts, as financial institutions around the world grapple with security risks and who should bear responsibility when autonomous bots make unauthorised transactions.

While the local lenders have yet to see the use of such agents among their customers, market observers noted that their adoption is inevitable.

“Every bank now has to look at their terms and conditions to see whether a third-party AI agent used by a first-party client should be considered a first party or third party,” said DBS CEO Tan Su Shan, at the lender’s third-quarter results briefing.