Hong Kong’s privacy watchdog is investigating risks to early users of HSBC’s popular PayMe mobile app after the Post discovered some remain unaware their personal details may have been exposed. The watchdog said the bank must ensure the highest level of privacy protection by default. This follows HSBC’s statement users have been able to choose the level of visibility of their transaction history within the app from day one. Some customers who adopted the app before 2019 were unaware that their transaction history could be viewed by friends within the platform. “‘Private’ is the default setting for newly joined PayMe users since August 2019,” the bank said on its website.

Source: The Star January 11, 2026 23:51 UTC