T-Mobile is currently facing a complaint against one of the victims of SIM swapping, a type of fraud. 

According to reports, a Californian recently filed a lawsuit against the Un-Carrier for failing to safeguard his personal and financial information. The lawsuit was filed on Monday in the Southern District of New York. The plaintiff, identified as Calvin Cheng, claimed that T-Mobile failed to protect his information. As a result, Cheng became a victim of the fraud. 

SIM swapping is identified as a type of fraud where the mobile carrier of a target is tricked into transferring service to a different device being controlled by the perpetrator. Once the data on a SIM card is obtained by a scammer, they can easily “impersonate the legitimate wireless customer.” 

The most common individuals being targeted by SIM swapping are those who have large quantities of cryptocurrency; which is the same as the victim involved in the scam. Cheng claimed that he lost over $450,000 in cryptocurrency investments when his account was hacked. 

Cheng believed that the attack would not have happened if not for “T-Mobile’s negligent practices and its repeated failure to adhere to federal and state law.” He claimed that a group of hackers enticed him to sell bitcoin for a premium. After his identity was confirmed, he transferred the bitcoin to a digital wallet. Unfortunately, this digital wallet was not under his control. The communication and transaction records have been deleted. 

Cheng argues that T-Mobile failed to uphold its responsibility to protect its customers personal and financial information, which led to the damages. The filing brings a total of six causes of action under the Federal Communications Act, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, a New York consumer protection statute, and tort law. 

Source: 1