Bank of America is advising customers not to give their banking usernames or passwords to AI assistants. In an email about protecting finances in the age of AI, the bank said credentials should not be shared with other people or outside services, including tools designed to act on a user's behalf.
Sharing access could allow an AI agent to carry out financial activity without a customer's knowledge. It may also expose login details if the tool has a security vulnerability, or trigger a bank's safeguards. The bank's message also notes that customers may be responsible for activity resulting from access they have shared.
AI agents and financial services
Financial institutions are still working out how AI agents might securely connect to banking services, including for payments made autonomously on a customer's behalf. Until those systems and safeguards are clearly established, Bank of America's guidance is to keep account credentials private.
As AI becomes more involved in everyday transactions, clear permissions and secure ways to authorize payments will help shape how people use these tools in the future.
