Consumer complaint received 2026-04-12 00:00:00
Product: Credit card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Problem with a purchase shown on your statement — Card was charged for something you did not purchase with the card
Company: CITIBANK, N.A.
State: NC

Complaint narrative:
On XX/XX/XXXX my personal computer was compromised by a hacker and they had access to my credit card accounts, bank accounts and email. They went into my Citibank Custom Cash credit card account and applied for a Personal Flex Loan in the amount of {$4300.00}, which was the full remaining open credit on the card. They also opened a Citibank Checking Account in my name in which I believe they were attempting to use to transfer the funds to so they could access them as cash, but it didn't work- this account was closed and determined to be fraud by Citibank ( corresponding letter attached ). The stolen loan funds were transferred to my personal checking account at XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX which the hackers also had direct access to at that time. The stolen funds sat in the bank checking account untouched awaiting retrieval from Citibank through my bank, only they never were. Citibank never reached out or communicated to my bank about the fraud incident at all. I of course did all the things you have to do with these situations- I froze my credit with the XXXX reporting agencies- changed all login information for all accounts and I brought the compromised laptop to a professional to retrieve needed items, verify the hack method and disable the laptop. I bought a new XXXX the same day and have proof of purchase from XXXX. All this to say that I have a complete provable paper trail of actions, calls, and facts of a cyber identity theft incident on XX/XX/XXXX and XXXX ( and beyond ). For elaboration and context only, and not to be included in the complaint, the hackers also took a {$10000.00} balance transfer off of my Citibank XXXX XXXX XXXX and transferred that to my personal savings account and moved the funds from there to unknown accounts, took {$15000.00} out of my HELOC and moved that to unknown accounts, that in addition to multiple purchases made with the credit cards ( XXXX XXXX, XXXX and Citibank ). XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX investigation was amazing and identified the fraud and worked with the other banks and credit card companies to secure, retrieve and return funds to their rightful owners. Every single other transaction made in this terrifying incident was identified as fraud swiftly and corrected without issue -- With the exception of Citibank XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Department and the fraudulent {$4300.00} credit card loan. I have attached a letter dated XX/XX/XXXX from Citibank for the checking account that was fraudulently that took place the same day and same time during cyber hack / account takeover where XXXX DETERMINED this incident was fraudulent activity and opened without my knowledge and consent. Citibank XXXX XXXX XXXX team sent me a digital letter of notification dated XX/XX/XXXX letting me know they received the fraud claim and to be assured they would investigate and would be in touch if they needed any additional information. I never heard from them again. The {$4300.00} remained in my account unused, untouched and unwanted. I persisted and called multiple times between XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX to be initially told the incident was under investigation and pending to finally being told on XX/XX/XXXX that the claim was denied but would be reopened upon my request. There were no emails, texts or digital letters of explanation in my Citibank account. I called again the following week as I had not heard back yet again- this was on XX/XX/XXXX. I escalated the call to management and they told me the claim was denied a second time and the case was closed. Their basis for this determination was simply that the loan funds were transferred to a bank account in my name! The cyber thieves had access to everything in my laptop. Needless to say I wanted this to be over so I asked how we could neutralize the damage and get rid of the loan -- the funds were still sitting in the account. The manager said yes, we can take the funds back and pay off the loan and we will credit back the fees associated with the loan- you can make that payment with me now over the phone. I did so immediately in good faith and have records of this transaction. I was told the call was recorded so that entire conversation should be accessible. The following week the Citi XXXX XXXX XXXX statement cycled and I saw to my horror that the loan was not paid off and not a single cent of the {$4300.00} paid over the phone was applied to it. It was accruing 11.99 % interest every minute since XX/XX/XXXX. I retrieved my 'snail-mail ' from my mailbox on XX/XX/XXXX and found a letter from Citibank dated XX/XX/XXXX telling me the fraud claim was denied, the investigation and case is closed, I am fully responsible for this loan and was told in writing to discontinue additional correspondence or telephone calls. I have attached the snail-mail correspondence Citibank sent XXXX one denying a fraud transaction, the other confirming fraudulent transaction - both part of the same cyber hack incident. I have attached my bank account statement from XXXX showing the variety of fraudulent transactions I discussed that happened INCLUDING the {$4300.00} deposit on XX/XX/XXXX that was from my Citi XXXX XXXX XXXX via the hacker -- Please note that the Checking, Savings and HELOC were all compromised and all were corrected and flagged as fraudulent in this cyber hack incident. Lastly, I attached the Citibank statement showing the date of the Flex Loan was added to the account and the {$4300.00} payment I made over the phone with Citibank management to rectify the problem post-denial that was not actually applied to the loan as well as the ongoing interest and origination fees not credited back. Finally for full disclosure, I sent a letter to Citibank XXXX and Billing Departments yesterday XX/XX/XXXX, notifying them that " I am making a {$5500.00} payment to the Citi XXXX XXXX card prior to the XX/XX/XXXX payment due date ( card ending in XXXX ) to insure total pay off the {$4300.00} fraudulent flex loan. I am making this payment under protest and solely to mitigate ongoing damages including interest accrual and potential credit reporting harm. I dispute this debt in full as the result of a well documented identity theft and account takeover incident. This payment does not constitute acknowledgement of liability, authorization of the transaction, or agreement that the debt is valid. This, in addition to and also ncluding the {$4300.00} payment made on XX/XX/XXXX. I reserve ALL RIGHTS to seek reimbursement and correction upon completion of a proper investigation. '' I am hopeful that Citibank will make this right in light of proof, additional information and advocacy of the CFPB. Thank you, Kind Regards, XXXX XXXX

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 monetary relief