AT&T Inc., an American telecommunication giant, has reportedly been called to books for working with hackers to conduct a cryptocurrency theft worth millions of dollars. According to FinanceMagnates, the incident was described as a classic identity theft in which AT&T allowed fraudsters to swap the victims Sim card without his approval.
Popular Bitcoin entrepreneur, Michael Terpin was the victim and said in the lawsuit that the company’s lack of security allowed the hacker to access his wireless account on January 7, 2018, and steal cryptocurrencies worth around USD 24 million.
While the method used to replace Terpin’s mobile Sim card is not too clear, the suit suggested that the fraudster whose identity is still unknown showed up as Michael Terpin to AT&T customer service agent and requested that his Sim card is transferred to another mobile.
This allowed the fraudsters to gain access to Terpin’s online accounts which they exploited. They changed the passwords on his cryptocurrency accounts and then initiated the transfer of funds from the breached wallet to their own addresses.
AT&T is lenient. Payback 10 times
The lawsuit by Terpin is filed as classic identity theft, a practice where a hacker gains unauthorized access to sensitive financial information by getting access to users personal data.
According to the plaintiff, the incident took place because of “AT&T’s willing cooperation with the hacker, gross negligence, violation of its statutory duties, and failure to adhere to its commitments in its Privacy Policy.”
Terpin’s lawsuit also compared the ugly incident to “a hotel giving a thief with a fake ID a room key and a key to the room safe to steal jewelry in the safe from the rightful owner.” This is simply not right and should be duly accounted for.
Aside from seeking damages and injunctive relief for the cryptocurrency theft, the victim also claims that the company collaborated with the fraudster and thus should pay him USD 224 million worth of compensation.
Michael Terpin is a serial cryptocurrency business icon and the founder of Marketwired, currently the world’s third-largest company newswire. His other cryptocurrency engagements include BitAngels, as well as Bitcoin Syndicate and CoinAgenda. His PR firm, Transform, also works with cryptocurrency-linked companies and other tech companies.
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