Chase customers outraged after reports of scams continue
Chase Bank customers are outraged after they say thousands of dollars have been taken from their accounts and say they're not getting any help.
The issue started after Erik Smith, a Gig Harbor business owner, told FOX 13 he was scammed out of at least $85,000.
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Gig Harbor business owner scammed out of $85k by what appeared to be his bank
A restaurant owner says he was scammed out of over $85,000 within seconds after getting a call directly from what he thought was his bank. Now, he has a warning for business owners and individuals alike.
Since our initial report, two more Chase customers have reached out making the same allegations.
David Burdick, 38, from Sultan says he received a message on Jan. 19 asking if he had a pending Zelle payment.
After replying ‘No’ he says he received a call from whom he thought was a Chase representative.
Burdick was asked to go on the mobile app and verify if any other charges appeared to be fraudulent.
"He knew what stores I went to, how much I spent and so that's what made me believe that it was actually a real person from Chase," Burdick said.
He says the alleged representative told him they’d have to transfer his savings into his checking account to prevent any more fraudulent activity.
He transferred $4,355.12 with the promise of an email and a new account. When he didn't receive the email he called the branch.
"I asked 'Where's my information? Where's all these details' They just kind of laugh and were like ‘That’s a scam’," Burdick explained. "I was like ‘What are you talking about’ and they say ‘Oh, yeah, this is a known problem’."
He says his money was wired to an account in Florida. Burdick called customer service and filed a complaint with the Executive Office
"I feel betrayed," Burdick said. "I feel like as it were taught, growing up, put your money in the bank, your money is safe, don't have to worry about it, it’s insured no worries; that's not the case."
He’s not alone. Nearly two months ago, on December 19th Trevor Sneva, received a similar text message.
His asked if he tried sending a wire transfer for $9,000.
He, too, went through the motions and answered the phone after responding ‘No’ hoping to keep his business account safe.
"He asked for my password. I wouldn't give him that," Sneva said.
However, he says they made him sign a document to keep the money in his account; but after getting passed around to another representative who asked for security questions he hung up and drove to his local branch in Spokane.
"While I was sitting at the bank, two more wires went out for $9,000 and $9,250," Sneva said.
A total of $28,000 dollars transferred from his account.
FOX 13 reached out to Chase, again. this time they declined to an interview but sent us this statement, "Impostor scams are a societal problem. Scammers impersonate companies, banks and even government agencies to try to trick consumers out of their hard earned money. We urge all consumers to ignore phone or internet requests for money or access to their computer or bank accounts."
They included these Scam Prevention Tips:
- Consumers should protect their personal account information, passwords and one-time passcodes. Never click on suspicious links or grant anyone remote access to your phone or computer
- Banks will never call, text or email asking for you to send money to yourself or anyone else to prevent fraud.
- If you want to be sure you’re talking to a legitimate representative of the company that contacted, call the number on their official website. If you want to be sure you are talking to a legitimate representative of your bank call the number at the back of your card or visit a branch
- To learn more about common scams and ways to protect yourself visit: www.chase.com/security-tips
Tips both victims say do not apply to them.
"It was chased personal banking phone number that called," Burdick said. "It's really scary to know somehow they gathered your personal information and automatically know everything about your finances."
"One thing they told me at the bank is you probably shouldn't have given them your user ID login; I said ‘Yeah, okay I understand that,’ and the first thing on Tuesday that they asked for when I was talking to Chase at this point was my user login ID," Sneva said.
FOX 13 reached out to the FBI who said they're aware of the ongoing scams and urge victims to file a report immediately to iC3.gov.
They're requesting you provide as much detail as possible and include sending and receiving bank information. They also want you ro contact your own institution's fraud department.