In the past we have seen how a TikTok video biased and even stopped scientific research, also the opposite, with tricks such as saving a lot of money by sending an unchecked suitcase. However, no matter how much a video goes viral, if what they promise us is to get “free money”, run away. Some unsuspecting, or perhaps not so unsuspecting, took it literally, and now the weight of the law has fallen on them.
The news. Finally, JPMorgan Chase has filed four lawsuits against users who allegedly took advantage of a technical failure in the bank’s ATM system, the known as “infinite money glitch”to withdraw hundreds of thousands of dollars fraudulently.
This “glitch” allowed users to deposit counterfeit checks and then withdraw cash before the checks were rejected due to insufficient funds. If the news sounds familiar to you, it may be because the “trick” spread online this summer.
The intrastory. We told it in the month of September. On social networks, but especially on TikTok, a video began to circulate in the summer that quickly went viral. The piece came to tell a “trick” to get “free money.” The “infinite money glitch” was nothing more than a bug in the ATMs of the famous financial institution in the United States, a full-fledged fraud where some users boasted online about the possibility of getting a loot “by the side.”
Although many believed it was a real opportunity to make easy money, Chase warned that these actions constituted fraud, a crime. What happened? That some ignored the warnings and They began to encourage others to deposit fake checks through the bank’s mobile application to, as we said before, then withdraw the money before the check was processed and validated by the financial institution.
Demands. In September, the entity stated that it was aware of the situation and had taken steps to resolve it, reminding, again, that any attempt to withdraw funds based on fraudulent checks is completely illegal. Testimonials from several users confirmed that their bank accounts had been blocked or had negative balances of up to $40,000.
So we come to this week’s news. JPMorgan has filed up to four lawsuits in federal courtslawsuits in cities such as Los Angeles, Houston and Miami, a set targeting both personal accounts and business accounts. Among the most notable cases, one is mentioned in Houston, where a client withdrew more than $290,000 after an “accomplice” deposited a false check for $335,000. Said accomplice reportedly was masked at the time of making the deposit.
Additional damages. Obviously, the bank seeks to recover the fraudulently obtained funds, along with interest, overdraft fees, legal costs, and in some cases, even punitive damages. In total, The accumulated amount in the four lawsuits exceeds $661,000.
By the way, JPMorgan Chase says it has tried to contact the defendants to request the voluntary return of the funds. All without success in the cases presented so far. The scenario is also a reminder that it seems worth remembering: free money does not exist. It doesn’t matter when you read it.
Image | Pexels, Mike Mozart
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