09/16/2024

Woman Sues FirstBank Over $10K Account Breach; Bank Says Transactions Were Made Using Her Card

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The lawsuit alleges FirstBank failed to flag suspicious activity, resulting in hackers draining $10,476.86 from the plaintiff’s account. FirstBank contends the transactions were made with the plaintiff’s card, in locations she had previously used it

A woman is suing FirstBank after claiming that hackers drained her account using suspicious, unauthorized transactions that she said went unflagged by the financial institution.

The civil complaint, alleging breach of contract, negligence, and Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) violations, was filed by New York resident Gladys Harrigan, who named both FirstBank Puerto Rico and its FirstBank Virgin Islands subsidiary as defendants.‌

According to the lawsuit, Ms. Harrigan said she opened a FirstBank savings account with the VI branch, and received a chipped ATM card. She claims that weak security procedures implemented by the bank, “such as single-factor protocols relying on usernames and passwords,” make accounts “readily susceptible to breach by scams such as phishing or SIM swaps.”