Anthropic Bans Surge Following Claude Max Zero-Dollar Exploit

Anthropic revoked access and banned accounts after users exploited a SEPA loophole for free Claude Max subscriptions. Legitimate paying users and corporate accounts were reportedly caught in the collateral ban wave.

Woofun AI reports that Anthropic initiated a large-scale account ban following the exploitation of a 'zero-dollar purchase' vulnerability in Claude Max. Users bypassed payment verification via the German SEPA direct debit gateway, accessing the $200 monthly benefit without deposit confirmation. After patching the loophole, Anthropic revoked these subscriptions and began banning associated accounts.

However, reports indicate that legitimate users, including long-standing paying subscribers and free-tier accounts, were also banned. Some companies noted multiple employee accounts were suspended simultaneously, suggesting shared IP addresses or devices may have triggered collateral risk controls. Anthropic has not disclosed the total number of banned accounts or confirmed the extent of collateral damage.