JPMorgan Chase on Monday launched a series of lawsuits against customers accusing the company of technical exploits glitch that went viral on tiktok To shake off thousands of dollars.
The glitch, which occurred in late August, allowed customers to deposit large checks at ATMs and withdraw funds immediately before the checks cleared, even if the checks later bounced.
The nation’s largest lender accused two individuals and two businesses of illegally siphoning off more than $661,000 in complaints filed in Houston, Miami and Los Angeles.
In the largest case, JPMorgan said a Houston man is still owed $290,939.47 after withdrawing most of a $335,000 check deposited by a masked man on Aug. 29 within two days. The bank said the check was dishonored on September 4.
The defendants did not respond to, acknowledge, or could not immediately be reached to messages seeking comment Monday.
Civil lawsuits do not exclude or eliminate the possibility of any criminal charges.
All four lawsuits accuse the defendants of violating their deposit agreements, and demand the return of improperly withdrawn funds and other costs.
New York-based JPMorgan said it is pursuing the cases and cooperating with law enforcement to ensure that people are held accountable.
“Fraud is a crime that affects everyone and undermines trust in the banking system,” JPMorgan spokesman Drew Pusateri said in a statement.
Check fraud is a federal crime. Many banks, including JPMorgan, allow customers to access some of the value of their checks until the check clears.
Last month, the Wall Street Journal reported that the bank was investigating thousands of potential check fraud incidents.
Paper checks are no longer accepted in most European countries. Britain and the Netherlands, for example, abolished them two decades ago.
Despite the increasing use of digital technology such as ApplePay, they remain a popular form of payment in the United States.
Checks caused $26.6 billion in losses globally last year, according to Nasdaq’s Global Financial Crime Report.
