the bank, the agency reported.

The room containing SWIFT networking equipment at the bank was kept locked for security reasons, but the technicians installed a wireless connection, making it accessible from other offices there, securing it with only a simple password and leaving it connected after they left, the officials said.

Finally, a computer was connected to the SWIFT systems without following the usual procedure of disabling its USB port, making it possible for malware to be introduced from a thumb drive, police told the agency.

That port was still accessible when the theft was discovered in February, said the report, citing a bank official.

During the theft, fraudulent SWIFT messages were sent to the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank in New York seeking to transfer $951 million from Bangladesh Bank's account thereto accounts elsewhere. Most of those transfers failed but around $81 million was sent to a bank in the Philippines, much of which remains unrecovered.

SWIFT was not responsible for any of the issues cited by the officials, and rejects the allegations, a company representative told IDG News Service.

"Bangladesh Bank is responsible for the security of its own systems interfacing with the SWIFT network and their related environment -- starting with basic password protection practices -- in much the same way as they are responsible for their other internal security considerations," the representative said.

Officials from Bangladesh Bank, SWIFT and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York are set to meet in Basel, Switzerland, on Tuesday to discuss the bank's security issues.