Social media users were recently inundated with rumours about an internet banking issue that supposedly permitted users to take as much as $50,000 from Chase Bank ATMs without facing any repercussions.
The "glitch" involves only depositing fake checks for substantial amounts of money that aren't detected right away, enabling users to take the money out or see it in their account right away, or applying for huge loans.
Similar scams have previously involved DoorDash, where users could order anything they wanted without incurring fees, and Cashapp, where users could transfer huge sums of money they didn't have.
According to MalwareTips.com, a cybersecurity site, there’s no evidence of a profitable bank error exploit. Large institutions like Chase have safeguards against fraudulent transactions. Even if someone were to withdraw money by mistake, the bank would likely detect the error, reclaim the funds, and potentially impose additional penalties.
Chase Bank "glitch": If I deposit a fictitious check at an ATM to withdraw more money than I have, will I go to jail?
You would need to worry about more than just negative account balances if you were able to withdraw money by depositing a fictitious check. Because you intentionally placed a bogus check into an account with the goal of receiving money that is not yours, this would be considered check fraud.
Penalties for check fraud are usually more severe the greater the amount involved in the scam. Such felonies carry heavier criminal fines and sentences of more than a year in prison.