New York sues Citibank for failing to reimburse fraud victims

The New York state’s attorney general’s office is suing Citibank, alleging it failed to reimburse victims of electronic fraud and that its security measures fell short and gave scammers opportunities to make unauthorized wire transfers from users’ accounts.

Attorney General Letitia James said fraud victims were promised reimbursement but the bank failed to take immediate action to recover the money. The suit requests the bank pay a $5,000 fine for each violation of the law and tap a third-party monitor to determine which customers have been affected.

Citibank says its security measures have significantly reduced wire fraud and that it followed all applicable laws and regulations for wire transfers.

“Banks are not required to make clients whole when those clients follow criminals’ instructions and banks can see no indication the clients are being deceived,” a spokesman said.