Consumer complaint received 2017-09-01
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: MI
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement
Sub-issue: Credit card company isn't resolving a dispute about a purchase on your statement

Complaint:
Acct # XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX My Citibank card was compromised, unauthorized payments to bogus or closed accounts were attempted for reasons i am not sure of. As a result of this fraud I have received charge-back fees and Citibank closed my account ; reason given was payment chargebacks. Citibank reported the inaccurate balance and account closed to the credit bureaus having a huge negative impact on my credit. When the true responsibility is actually Citibank and here is why. 

For the past 2 plus months attempting to sign online to view or manage my citibank simplicity card has been nothing short of an arduous deal, to the point that I literally fear the thought. I have contacted XXXX numerous times, explaining the difficulty making my payments and managing my account. 
When I or most consumers receive an error message attempting to sign on, we spend long periods ( 20-30 minutes ) trying different browsers, resetting passwords, which then must send a code and enter other verifying information. 
-error messages include ..our server generated an error while processing your request or - getting a blank screen or entering the wrong password, but everytime I reset the password I get the same response. Then I finally call customer service, I wait on hold for 5,10, 15 minutes or longer. I get someone from XXXX or XXXX. I have to explain the entire situation, they transfer me to another department, on hold again, when a representative finally answers, I have to tell them the entire same story I just told the last rep., then we go through the identity process and finally the Citibank rep. instructs me to -Use a different browser ( doesnt work ) -Clear cookies and cache ( doesnt work ) -restart computer -another reset of my passcode Finally, the rep. Admits this is a known problem and they are working on it. That was over a month ago. I was on the phone for over an hour, plus the time i spent prior to calling, took nearly 1 hour 45 minutes. 
I do not have that kind of free time. Monday - Friday, I must get up at XXXX ; XXXX, leave for work by XXXX and do not get back home until XXXX. I am exhausted and do not have the mental strength to go through something like this. 


What truly XXXX me off is the fact CITIBANK is aware of this and does not inform their customers, this would have saved me all that time and frustration of trying to figure out if the problem is me or my equipment and then all the wasted time on the phone. 
On top of all this, I am unable to make a payment or monitor my account. Which is how my account is compromised and I am unaware of anything until I receive a letter from Citibank that they closed my account due to payment chargebacks. 
So i begin conducting some research, ( more hours of my time spent ) and find out there are thousands of similar complaints all over the web. Here is one link http : //downdetector.com/status/citi In then contact a friend who is a computer detective, does work for the FBI on ( computer crimes ) and I find out the reason Citibank acts like the problem is a simple fix and the fault of my computer or browser, is to cover up the fact their website has been continually hacked and consumers information compromised. I have been informed from very reliable sources Citibank has been covering this up for many months and lying to me and other clients about the security of their produce and our information. Really freaking unbelievable!

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 explanation