Consumer complaint received 2023-11-21
Company: PNC Bank N.A.
State: VA
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Funds not handled or disbursed as instructed

Complaint:
Not knowing that my PNC online banking account was hacked and the email address on the account was possibly already changed, my wife and I left the US on XX/XX/XXXX. After arriving in XXXX, my wife and I had been busy with settling in the next week+. We were getting XXXX and starting our new jobs in XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX. We had not accessed our PNC account until around XX/XX/XXXX when my wife got an email from XXXX indicating that the auto-pay for our XXXX credit card failed because there was insufficient fund in the linked account ( i.e., PNC Checking ). ( That email is attached ). Then I logged into PNC and noticed the following unauthorized activities that had been happening on my account. ( There could be more but I did not see them immediately ). 

1. Email address was changed to a " XXXX '' address that I had never used or owned. 
2. Cash advances : XXXX for {$4000.00} ( + fees ) and XXXX for {$300.00} and {$1300.00} ( + fees ). 
3. ACH transfers : XXXX for {$20000.00} and {$1200.00} ; XXXX for {$20000.00} ; XXXX for {$14000.00} ; and XXXX for {$3000.00}. 

I immediately called the PNC customer support and other channels to report these unauthorized activities in an attempt to stop and retrieve back any transactions that were still pending. I also explained the situation to the PNC reps with my understanding at the time. 

Even with all this information, PNC waited 10 full business days and on the XXXX business day, they denied my claim. I called PNC fraud department multiple times past couple days asking for updates on the investigation because I was willing to provide any information that would be helpful to them. PNC investigators never called me for more information. Specifically, I reached out to PNC on XX/XX/XXXX, and I got an update today, XX/XX/XXXX ( only after I called them ) that the claim was denied. No reasoning was provided to me. All they said was that after their due diligence, they deemed the transfers to be valid. 

I can not believe that PNC deemed these unauthorized transfers at issue to be valid. 
Before I take a formal legal action, I am trying to go through this CFPB complaint process so that PNC revisits this case and investigates the issue properly. 

Here are some information that I could have provided if PNC requested : 1. My wife and I took a flight to XXXX scheduled for XXXX Eastern Time on XX/XX/XXXX. That flight duration was XXXX hours and XXXX minutes. ( It actually took longer ). I am attaching the e-tickets for the flight for your record. 

2. With this information, I ask you to cross-check exactly when the Cash XXXX was made on my PNC credit card for {$4000.00}. The PNC website only shows that the transaction was made on XX/XX/XXXX. If this transaction occurred after around XX/XX/XXXX XXXX ( when I would have left the US with no WIFI for the next XXXX hours ), that would mean an unauthorized person accessed the online account to initiate the cash advance. ( Of course, even if this request was made between XXXX and XXXX of XX/XX/XXXX Eastern Time , that still does not mean I requested this, because I did not. But I am asking you to confirm and double-check, which may corroborate my story ). This information is available to PNC only and I request PNC to provide me and CFPB with the timestamp for the cash advance as well. 

3. I am still in XXXX. To prove that, I am also attaching a Korean government issued document showing when I entered XXXX and that I had not left XXXX as of XX/XX/XXXX. This document is in XXXX but I think you can generally pull out the requisite information out of this. Should you require a more recent entry information or a translated document to prove that I am still in XXXX and that I had not left XXXX, please let me know but I do not think that document would be necessary. 

4. I suggest that you look into who has been accessing my online banking account using IP address or some other tools available to you to confirm that someone else had been accessing this account to make changes to the account and initiate ACH transfers. Please share the detailed logs of who accessed my PNC account between XXXX XXXX until XXXX XXXX for me and CFPB. 

5. I am also attaching this FTC identity theft record that I had filed for your record. 

XXXX. On or around XX/XX/XXXX, I started receiving tons of spams to my email account which had been associated with PNC for many years before the unauthorized person changed it to something else that I did not own, directing PNC emails to that email address. Unfortunately and critically, PNC never sent an email to the old email address indicating that there was a change to my account as other banks would properly do ( e.g., XXXX, XXXX, and XXXX ). I am attaching a screenshot of the recent spams that I am still receiving. There was no email from PNC between XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX. After XX/XX/XXXX, I changed the email address associated with the account back to my own. 

** PNC should fix their system so that an old email address would receive at least a final email indicating that there was a change to the account. If PNC did this like other banks would do, then I would have received an email from PNC as soon as the hacker changed the email address and I would have realized that my account was hacked -- before ACH transfers were initiated. In other words, the unauthorized ACH transfers were preventable. 

** I again request all the data and information PNC relied on in concluding that these were NOT unauthorized/fraudulent transactions. That way, I can cross-check your process and let you know if I disagree or can rebut. 

Lastly, I am happy to provide as much information as PNC would need to come to the right conclusion - i.e., I am the victim and these were unauthorized transactions and the funds should be refunded back to my account.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation