Charlotte customers not affected in worldwide bank heist

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Channel 9 investigated to see whether customers' money is safe after the alleged worldwide bank heist.

WSOC was told the heist affects banks, not individual customers, so customers' balances should be right.

Federal authorities in New York said Thursday they uncovered two cyberattacks where thieves stole millions from ATMs in just a few hours. They say international hackers broke into global banks and created ATM cards without limits. They said the thieves then physically went to ATMs and cashed out as much as possible, netting almost $2.8 million in just about two and a half hours in New York alone.

Investigators believe the entire operation probably involved more than 20 countries and $45 million.

Charlotte resident Ernest Thomas heard about the high-tech heist and said, "I have no idea how they did that. That's amazing."

At this point, there seem to be few, if any, Charlotte ties. Wells Fargo said it's not a victim in this case. Sources told Channel 9 that Bank of America is not either. The U.S. Secret Service said it has not gotten Charlotte agents involved. The local U.S. Attorney's Office said it's not part of the case.

Former FBI assistant director and former Bank of America financial security executive, Chris Swecker, said bank customers should check their accounts regularly.

"Everybody should always look at their statements and take precautions and, if they see any suspicious activity, report it immediately," Swecker said.

"The thought is in the back of my head," said Charlotte resident Meiko Dukes.