In 2016 and 2017, a Wells Fargo fake accounts scandal came to light in which bank employees were accused of opening accounts without customers’ knowledge to hit sales goals. Now, lawyers are investigating if other banks like Bank of America may have been using similar tactics to hit their own sales goals.

Recently, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency conducted an investigation into the banking industry to determine if the scandal of bank employees opening fake bank accounts extended beyond Wells Fargo, or if that problem was unique to the bank. Unfortunately, the office found that other banks may have also used the same tactic.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency reviewed over 40 midsize and small banks, and reportedly found “bank-specific instances of accounts being opened without proof of customer consent.” The office stated that they did not consider the issue to indicate systemic problems with the industry. The office also would not say what banks were investigated or what banks had been found to have created fake accounts.

However, in light of this news, customers may be wondering if their bank was using dishonest methods to boost sales goals, at the expense of their customers. Many customers at Wells Fargo did not know that they had had fake accounts opened in their name, so many customers at other banks might not be able to tell if their information has been used in this kind of possible fraud.

In fact, the fake bank account scandal isn’t the only scandal that Wells Fargo has been involved in, so Wells Fargo customers and banking customers at other major banks may worry that they were subjected to a range of dishonest banking practices without their knowledge. In August, Yahoo! Finance laid out all of the scandals that Wells Fargo was allegedly involved in since 2015. It’s a worrying list, and many banking customers may be wondering how they can defend themselves against these practices. 

However, if you do think you may have been affected by a fake accounts scandal, you may have a legal claim. Lawyers are launching an investigation into the possibility of a fake accounts scandal at banks other than Wells Fargo. One of these banks being investigated is Bank of America. If you bank with Bank of America or another bank and you think you may have had a bank account opened in your name without your consent, an experienced lawyer could help you determine if this is the case and if you have a legal claim.

Happily, some justice has been served in the case of Wells Fargo. The Wall Street Journal reported that the bank was forced to pay $185 million in fines over the fake bank account scandal. Additionally, many managers suspected of being involved in the scandal were fired in an attempt for Wells Fargo to clean up its practices. 

If other banks are found to be linked to similar activity, they may also face fines and have to revise their practices.