Woman Gets Her Money Stolen Even After Canceling Her Accounts

A full month later, last Sunday, she visited a Citibank automated teller machine to take out cash, and was told she had only $100 where there should have been about $3,500. She hurried home to check her statements online and found even worse news about her HSBC savings account, where $6,000 of her $7,000 balance was gone.

She called the banks and visited Manhattan branches and was told that someone had visited in person and had made withdrawals from tellers in branches in Pelham in Westchester County. But how? The thief did not have the new A.T.M. cards or account information.

A woman named Olga had her purse stolen at a Starbucks and immediately contacted her bank and credit card companies to cancel her cards and report the theft. Even so, the thief was able to withdraw money from her new accounts a month later by walking into a bank and using Olga’s driver’s license and social security card (I used to carry my social security card in my wallet too — until I realized that there really is no good reason to have it on you at all times.) Even with the I.D., the thief would need to know Olga’s PIN to withdraw money, but could have possibly sidestepped that by correctly answering security questions. It’s kind of mind-boggling that someone could walk in a bank with someone else’s I.D. and walk out moments later with that person’s money.

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