Consumer complaint received 2022-02-22
Company: Synovus Bank
State: GA
Product: Checking or savings account
Sub-product: Checking account
Issue: Managing an account
Sub-issue: Deposits and withdrawals

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX at XXXX PM, I received a text from " Synovus Fraud Dept '' asking if I attempted a transaction of {$86.00} at XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX. The text indicated that I should type XXXX. If NO I would receive a call from customer service shortly. I said NO since I didn't make a purchase at XXXX, and received a call moments later. The gentleman on the other end of the line explained that he was from Synovus Bank and proceeded to ask me to verify information to make sure it was me. He asked me for my mobile banking id, and at the point I asked him how I knew this was the bank. He told me to check the phone number on back of my debit card and I would see that phone number he was calling from was in fact the bank. I checked and the phone number was from the bank. He asked me for my information and sadly I gave it to him thinking he was a customer service person at the bank. He then told me that someone was attempting to make a XXXX ( someone named XXXX ) transaction on my account in the amount of 250 and he asked I authorized that transaction. I said no I did not. He said, OK, you will be getting a text in just a bit asking you if you authorized, go ahead and answer yes, because if I answered yes, he would be able to stop it from the bank, if I said no, I would have to dispute with XXXX. Believing him, I said yes. Then I got another text from someone else saying that XXXX requests {$240.00}. I was starting to get a little nervous and suspicious and he kept putting me on hold and then he disconnected. I immediately called XXXX XXXX at XXXX and held on the phone for about 20 minutes. Finally someone came on the line and I explained what had happened. They immediately froze my account and cancelled my debit card. I was advised to go to a branch the next morning and speak to someone there about what happened. I did that the very next day. I went to the XXXX, GA branch and spoke to XXXX. I was there for about an hour. We ended up closing my account that I had had for 30 years and cancelling my debit card. In the meantime the bank put a hold on my account for online service for 60 days! Of course my XXXX was also disabled. 
I received a letter from Synovus on Friday the XX/XX/XXXX stating that they had done a " thorough '' investigation and decided that I approved those XXXX transactions and I would not be reimbursed. This is absolutely ridiculous since the scammer got my phone number from them in first place! Synovus was compromised! Their phone number was spoofed and somehow, I'm out close to {$500.00}. When I called Synovus on XX/XX/22 to find out why they had come to this conclusion, since no one called me or asked me anything about what happened before making the decision, they told me I would have to take it up with XXXX. When I call XXXX on XX/XX/22, the automated answering service says that I have to go to my Financial Institution. 
If the bank didn't know I had been scammed, why did they close my account and why is my account blocked for online banking. 
I did everything in my power once I figured out that I had been scammed. I did everything they told me to do. 
Please help in any way possible.

Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief