Metro Bank customer fights for £14,000 refund after AI-linked fraud

A Metro Bank customer, Zoli Rutter from Sussex, has been fighting for a refund of over £14,244 after fraudsters used his debit card linked to an Anthropic account to buy Claude credits. The scam exploited a failure in Metro Bank’s systems to block transactions after Rutter denied authorizing them. Fraudsters made multiple transactions between £90 and £200 following his initial rejection. This incident is linked to Anthropic’s Claude AI chatbot, which has faced scrutiny over publicly available user data and its role in financial fraud. In May, a Claude user reported similar fraud involving gift card purchases using stolen financial details. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) initially endorsed Claude for financial firms’ AI experiments but later revealed user conversations were exposed online. Rutter, who used Claude for business invoice tracking, had his card frozen after fraudulent transactions continued despite initial blocks. Metro Bank refunded him temporarily while seeking a chargeback from Anthropic. Anthropic claims the fraud stemmed from a coordinated gang using Rutter’s compromised card details, not its own systems. Rutter plans to lodge a complaint with the Financial Ombudsman Service and has been offered £300 compensation by the bank. The bank has improved card-blocking processes to prevent similar delays.