Consumer complaint received 2019-10-19
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
State: NY
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Savings account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Deposits and withdrawals

Complaint:
On XX/XX/2019 at XXXX XXXX, I received a call from the number XXXX from a person claiming to be a Bank of America representative who said that the system has detected a fraud activity on my account. She requested that I give her the three-digit security code on the back of my Bank of America debit card in order to confirm my identity. I thought that this was a scam call so I hung up. 

I immediately logged into my Bank of America Mobile Banking Application on my phone to check my accounts. When I tried to log in, I received an alert that my password had been changed and that my account had been locked. I reset my password and continued on with my day. 

The next day, XX/XX/2019, while checking my banking mobile app, I saw that a transaction Discover Card ending in XXXX for the amount of {$5700.00} was made on my Bank of America Advantage Savings Account. I called Bank of America to report that I had not made/authorized this transaction. I filed a claim to get my money back as this transaction was still pending and I was told that the process would take 7-10 business days.

The representative stated that someone had gained access to my bank account using my username and password, and this person asked me to reset my username and password in order to prevent further fraud activity on my account. While speaking to the representative, I saw that there were two more transactions being made on the same Savings account : the first being a transaction for {$4300.00} under the name XXXX XXXX Credit Card ending in XXXX, and the second transaction for {$5400.00} under the name XXXX XXXX Credit Card ending in XXXX. These two transactions had been declined.

I called the Bank of America Fraud Claims Department ( XXXX ) several times between XX/XX/2019 and XX/XX/2019 to get updates on the status of the claim but was told that I would have to wait the full 10 business days before anything could be done. 

On XX/XX/2019, I reached out to the Bank of America Fraud Claims Department because 10 business days had passed since I had submitted my claim. I was surprised to hear that my claim had been denied on XX/XX/2019. Bank of America claims that this transaction had been performed from my device with the same IP address that I always use to access my Mobile Banking Application. I reinforced that I had not made this transaction and that I do not even have any Credit Cards accounts with XXXX or XXXX XXXX. The Bank of America Fraud Claims representative told me that this denial decision was final, unless I could bring forth evidence that my phone had been hacked with a virus or malware at the time of the fraudulent transaction. 

The representative then advised my to speak to my phone provider ( XXXX ) to run a virus scan on my XXXXXXXX XXXX device. I visited two XXXX stores and both claimed that they do not run such virus scans. I reached out to the Bank of America Fraud Claims Department again to inform them of this. Another representative then advised me to visit a XXXX location near me to run a virus test on my device. I followed the representatives instructions and went to a XXXX location and after purchasing an anti-virus software, I was informed that there were several viruses on my device that the software was able to remove. I faxed a letter from the XXXX technical department to the Bank of America Fraud Claims Department to prove that my device had in fact been hacked. 

I called XXXX Customer Service to see if any fraudulent activity had been detected on my device. However, I was told that they could not detect any fraudulent activity on my account. 

I even reached out to XXXX Customer Service to see if any fraudulent activity had been detected on my email since this email address was linked with the bank account at the time. They were not able to detect any fraudulent activity. 

I approached the police department to file a police report and was told that I would need an Affidavit from Bank of America stating the situation but the bank refused to give me an Affidavit. They stated that they could only provide me with a denial letter for the claim. I even tried to speak to a Bank of America Branch manager in my local branch but the representatives told me there was nothing they could do to help me and that only the Fraud Claims department could handle my claim. The bank is refusing to give me an affidavit which is necessary for me to file a police report and go forth with any police investigations. 

I have exhausted all options now. I did not conduct this transaction. I did not use my device to make these transactions. I was not sent any verification emails or text messages to authorize such a transaction from my savings account. I do not have any accounts with XXXX or XXXX XXXX. Bank of America is refusing to reopen my claim even though they are responsible for protecting me and my accounts from fraudulent activity. Bank of America did not even look into who these accounts belong to and has simply disregarded my concerns.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief