Keep an eye on your credit card statements, folks

card theft is such a horrible thing...so sorry it happend to your dad...:(
There for the grace of god go I....:shock: It can happen to any one....scary as HECK

The current hypothesis from the fraud investigator is that someone got a credit card number from Dad while we were at a Destin/SoWal restaurant in the past couple of days, and sold the number to someone else who made a new card with that number and a card blank. .

Thanks for the heads up!

Have you contacted the restaurants you visited?

that's why i never use my credit card at restaurants - i am so paranoid this will happen. it does not ever leave my site.

I've heard of this happening with debit cards, but not credit cards. I guess we're supposed to use cash?:idontno:

New Credit Card Scam ... Snopes.Com says this is true. See this site -
http://[URL="http://WWW.snopes.Com/crime/warnings/creditcard.asp"]WWW.snopes.Com/crime/warnings/creditcard.asp[/URL]
>
>
> This one is pretty slick since they provide YOU with all the information,
except the one piece they want.
>
> Note, the callers do not ask for your card number; they already have it.
This information is worth reading. By understanding how the VISA &MasterCard
Telephone Credit Card Scam works, you'll be better prepared to protect
yourself.
>
> One of our employees was called on Wednesday from "VISA", and I was called
on Thursday from "Master Card".
>
> The scam works like this: Person calling says, "This is (name), and I'm
calling from the Security and Fraud Department at VISA. My Badge number is
12460. Your card has been flagged for an unusual purchase pattern, and I'm
calling to verify. This would be on your VISA card which was issued by (name
of bank). Did you purchase an Anti-Telemarketing Device for $497.99 from a
Marketing company based in Arizona?" When you say "No", the caller continues
with, "Then we will be issuing a credit to your account. This is a company
we have been watching and the charges range from $297 to $497, just under
the $500 purchase pattern that flags most cards. Before your next statement,
the credit will be sent to (gives you your address), is that correct?"
>
> You say "yes". The caller continues - "I will be starting a Fraud
investigation. If you have any questions, you should call the 1- 800 number
listed on the back of your card (1-800-VISA) and ask for Security.
>
> You will need to refer to this Control Number. The caller then gives you a
6 digit number. "Do you need me to read it again?"
>
> Here's the IMPORTANT part on how the scam works. The caller then says, "I
need to verify you are in possession of your card". He'll ask you to "turn
your card over and look for some numbers". There are 7 numbers; the first 4
are part of your card number, the next 3 are the security Numbers' that
verify you are the possessor of the card. These are the numbers you
sometimes use to make Internet purchases to prove you have the card. The
caller will ask you to read the 3 numbers to him. After you tell the caller
the 3 numbers, he'll say, "That is correct, I just needed to verify that the
card has not been lost or stolen, and that you still have your card. Do you
have any other questions?" After you say No, the caller then thanks you and
states, "Don't hesitate to call back if you do", and ha! ngs up! .
>
> You actually say very little, and they never ask for or tell you the Card
number. But after we were called on Wednesday, we called back within 20
minutes to ask a question. Are we glad we did! The REAL VISA Security
Department told us it was a scam and in the last 15 minutes a new purchase
of $497.99 was charged to our card.
>
> Long story - short - we made a real fraud report and closed the VISA
account. VISA is reissuing us a new number. What the scammers want is the
3-digit PIN number on the back of the card. Don't give it to them. Instead,
tell them you'll call VISA or Master card directly for verification of their
conversation. The real VISA told us that they will never ask for anything on
the card as they already know the information since they issued the card! If
you give the scammers your 3 Digit PIN Number, you think you're receiving a
credit. However, by the time you get your statement you'll see charges for
purchases you didn't make, and by then it's almost too late and/or more
difficult to actually file a fraud report.
>
> What makes this more remarkable is that on Thursday, I got a call from a
"Jason Richardson of Master Card" with a word-for-word repeat of the VISA
scam. This time I didn't let him finish. I hung up! We filed a police
report, as instructed by VISA. The police said they are taking several of
these reports daily! They also urged us to tell everybody we know that this
scam is happening. >
>
> Please pass this on to all your family and friends. By informing each
other, we protect each other

From ClarkHoward.com

Jan 30, 2004 -- Scams to watch out for
Clark wants to make sure you know about some scams taking place right now that could hurt your pocketbook. With the first one, you get a phone call from someone claiming to be from the security or fraud department of your credit card company. They even know your card number and what bank issued your card. How that information is being obtained is unknown. But they will claim that there has been an unusual purchase on your account, and they?ll tell you what the supposed charge is. When you say you didn?t make that charge, they will then offer you a credit and give you a number to call to get it. Then the scam takes place. After all of that, they will verify that you are in possession of your card so they ask for your three- or four-digit secret code. This is the only information they don?t have, so once you say it you?ve given them full access. Unless you?re initiating the order, you never give that number over the phone. And no one should ask for it. Clark read about another scam in the Orlando Sentinel involving ?skimmers? that steal the information from your credit card or ATM card. It started out at ATM machines, and now the criminals have tapped into pay-at-the-pump gas stations. They put hardware into the credit card scanners that captures your information in a second. It?s especially dangerous if you?re using a debit card to buy gas because you basically have no chargeback rights if a fraudulent claim is placed on your car. Gas station owners don?t even know this is going on, but it?s been reported in Florida and California. Clark tells you things so you are careful out there. It doesn?t mean everyone is a criminal. But you need to check your statements and be cautious.


************************

For those of you who don't know, continue to use your credit card, only if it is a real CREDIT card, not a debit card. With a credit card, if there are fraudulent charges, you don't have to pay the charges in question when you make the credit card company aware of the fraud.

However, if you used your debit card, the money is automatically deducted and it can screw up your bank account, causing many bounced checks, until two months pass and you get it all worked out.

FYI- Most credit cards and debit cards have a maximum cash withdrawal amount of $500 per day to help prevent someone from wiping out your checking account.

Beachmouse, this happened to my mother on her very first visit here. She only used her card at a restaurant and figured that's when her number was stolen. She got a call from the card company because the charges were very unusual for her -- they were all at liquor stores! My Mom doesn't drink and certainly doesn't travel all over Florida liquored up:funn: The charges were from Ft. Walton Beach to Hollywood Fl. I was kind of embarassed that it happened to her in Destin-What a shame that this sort of thing may actually keep people from eating, drinking, or just vacationing in our area.

In June I went for takeout at Shades on the Loop for the whole fam which totaled $120 including tip. Well that charge did not show up on my Visa statement until like August I remember--I just thought that was weird, not saying Shades did anything wrong, God knows I love my Shrimp Po' Boys.

From ClarkHoward.com

I heart Clark Howard.

I heart Clark Howard.

He's my Geeky hero, too. A little cheap sometimes, but very informative and smart.

He's my Geeky hero, too. A little cheap sometimes, but very informative and smart.

Yeah, he has a Mensa IQ, according to an article I read about him.

I wish you guys would post the restaurants this is happening at. I am always uncomfortable if the server takes my card where I can't watch them!!!

The scam is that the call is not actually coming from the fraud dept of the credit cards. Go back and read my post and hoover rc's.

I heart Clark Howard.

me too!!!:wub:



My mom had the same thing happen. Someone had her amex card number, went to publix and other grocery stores and pulled $200 or more out at the time. Since the stores they used were in Destin and ft walton the company did not have a red flag. The only way they knew was when my mom and the thief were both trying to get something at the same time. 😱 This is a scary thing.
I believe that my computer has been hacked into so now I guess I have to change all passowords :bang: WHY WHY WHY do people do this????:idontno: :twisted:

WHY WHY WHY do people do this????

Sad to say, we humans, as a species, are still predators. Thankfully, most of us are highly evolved enough to have lost our taste for taking advantage of weakness in others.

What's frustrating about identity theft, credit card fraud, computer viruses, election fraud, and all that sort of thing is that the corporate and government entities who create systems seem to be unwilling to improve them any more than is required to protect their own interests (jaded view) and that the technologies of protection are always one step behind those of fraud (practical view).

<Rant Mode Off>

All in all, the fact that things function as well as they do is a resounding testament to human goodness.

Sister Mouse is in federal law enforcement. She's confident that the fraud alert from the credit card company is legit and not part of the scam.

As for the restaurants that might be involved we figure it was probably one of about five places. I don't want to name names of the places because I don't want to drag some innocent businesses (a couple of which I'm very fond of and almost protective of) into the mess by saying they might be the ones with the problem when their employees are innocent.

If this ever happens, you can always call the 800 number on the back of the credit card and know that you are talking to the real credit card company. See what they have to say.

And here we go again. Mr. Mouse got a call from Citibank today saying that they were going to cancel and reissue our cards because we had used them at a business where they had an ongoing fraud problem that CB had just picked up on. Mr. Mouse thanked them, hung up, and called the customer service number on the back of the card to verify the story and it checked out true.

We've used the cards at a couple big online shopping places, and a few local gas stations. Only overlap between us and my parents' card use, if there is a connection, might be at a local gas station.

Irritating stuff. I'm just glad that the only thing that automatically went onto the card was the Sunpass replenishment, and that I'm not going to have to fuss any more than that.