Michael Terpin, an American crypto investor, recently filed a $224 million lawsuit against AT&T – the multinational telecommunications company. Terpin, who’s being represented by Los Angeles law firm Greenberg Glusker, has accused his phone carrier AT&T of “gross negligence” that caused him to lose $24 million in cryptocurrency.
The California resident claimed that millions of dollars in digital currency was stolen from his crypto account because AT&T failed to protect his private data.
According to the 69-page complaint document presented to the Los Angeles District Court, the plaintiff’s cellphone account was compromised due to “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.”
AT&T Employees Involved In SIM Swap Fraud
Terpin has also accused AT&T’s staff members of being involved in a SIM swap fraud, which allowed the hackers to steal digital currency from his crypto wallet. The lawsuit has alleged that AT&T’s employees “actively cooperate with hackers in SIM swap frauds by giving hackers direct access to customer information and by overriding AT&T’s security procedures.”
In the past seven months, Terpin claims that his private accounts have been compromised twice through “digital identity theft.” When his account was first hacked, the crypto investor said it was due to an “insider cooperating with the hacker.” He believes an AT&T worker handed over his phone number and other private information to an impostor.
AT&T Employees “Profiting” From Working With “Cyber Terrorists”
The hacker was then able to use his phone number to gain access to his crypto wallet and steal his digital currency, Terpin claims. He also noted that there had been many other cases where AT&T had acted negligently and that:
“In recent incidents, law enforcement has even confirmed that AT&T employees profited from working directly with cyber terrorists and thieves in SIM swap frauds…What AT&T did was like 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.”
Terpin is now seeking $23.8 million in compensatory damages from the phone service provider and another $200 million in punitive damages.
AT&T has reportedly responded to Terpin’s complaints through an email – stating: “we dispute these allegations and look forward to presenting our case in court.”
