SIM-Swap Victim Sues T-Mobile, Citibank to Recover $100,000 in Stolen Funds

Citibank removed to U.S. District Court for Southern New York in Manhattan Friday a SIM-swap complaint (docket 1:23-cv-11294) filed Nov. 20 in New York Supreme Court in which plaintiff Brian Jones accuses Citibank and T-Mobile of breach of contract and negligence. The New York resident alleges T-Mobile allowed individuals to switch his service and SIM card to an unauthorized cellphone, said the complaint. The individuals accomplished their fraud without providing identification as they bought the new cellphone with cash and were not required to meet T-Mobile’s “own internal procedures,” it said. Citibank then allowed them to use the newly absconded PIN to withdraw roughly $100,000 from Jones’ account without properly identifying them, it said. The complaint seeks punitive damages against T-Mobile and Citibank, plus recovery of the stolen funds.