Issues: FTC Violations, Phone Scams
On February 27, 2023, Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP filed a class action lawsuit against T-Mobile USA, Inc (“T-Mobile”) for failure to protect customers’ personal and financial information. This lawsuit aims to represent customers who were victims of a SIM card swapping scam perpetrated through their T-Mobile cellular accounts. According to the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), a SIM swap scammer contacts a cell phone service provider, like T‐Mobile, saying the victim’s phone was lost or damaged. The scammer then allegedly asked T-Mobile to activate a new SIM card connected to the victim’s phone number on a new phone — a phone the scammer owns, which allows the scammer to receive all the victim’s text messages, calls, and data on the new phone.
The lawsuit specifically alleges that through using T‐Mobile’s services, scammers convinced T‐Mobile to transfer access to Plaintiff’s phone number from his registered SIM card to the scammer’s SIM card. By requesting these fraudulent SIM card transfers, the scammers were able to access Plaintiff’s personal information, including Plaintiff’s email, banking, and investment accounts. Once a scammer has connected their SIM card with the victim’s phone number, the scammer is able to access anything that was previously accessible to the victim through their cell phone. Scammers were able to perpetrate this “SIM swap scam” because of T‐Mobile’s gross negligence in protecting their customers’ private financial and personal information, its negligent hiring and supervision of T‐Mobile employees who were responsible for safeguarding that information, and its violation of laws that expressly protect the information of wireless carrier customers.
If you are a T-Mobile customer, or a customer of another wireless carrier company, make sure your personal and financial information is secure. You can reach our firm, Fitapelli & Schaffer, LLP, for a free and confidential consultation at (212)300-0375 or you can visit our website here for additional helpful information regarding your work rights.
You can also view the filed complaint here.