FYI: Credit Card Fraud prevention

Turcoloco · Mar 2, 2005

This was just passed on to me. It made sense to pass it on as well, since I too had personally experienced one only a few months ago!

SCENE 1

A friend went to the local gym and placed his belongings in the locker. After the workout and a shower, he came out, saw the locker open, and thought to himself, "Funny, I thought I locked the locker. Hmmmmm"

He dressed and just flipped the wallet to make sure all was in order. Everything looked okay - all cards were in place. A few weeks later his credit card bill came - a whooping bill of $14.000! He called the credit card company and started yelling at them, saying that he did not make the transactions. Customer care personnel verified that there was no mistake in the system and asked if his card had been stolen. "No," he said, but then took out his wallet, pulled out the credit card, and yep you guessed it, a switch had been made. An expired similar credit card from the same bank was in the wallet. The thief broke into his locker at the gym and switched cards. Verdict: The credit card issuer said since he did not report the card missing earlier, he would have to pay the amount owed to them.

How much did he have to pay for items he did not buy? $9,000! Why were there no calls made to verify the amount swiped? Small
amounts rarely trigger a "warning bell" with some credit card companies. It just so happens that all the small amounts added up to big one!

SCENE 2

A man at a local restaurant paid for his meal with his credit card. The bill for the meal came, he signed it, and the waitress folded
the receipt and passed the credit card along. Usually, he would just take it and place it in his wallet or pocket. Funny enough, though, he actually took a look at the card and, lo and behold, it was the expired card of another person. He called the waitress and she looked perplexed. She took it back, apologized, and hurried back to the counter under the watchful eye of the man. All the waitress did while walking to the counter was wave the wrong expired card to the counter cashier, and the counter cashier immediately looked down and took out the real card.

No exchange of words - nothing!

She took it and came back to the man with an apology. Verdict: Make sure the credit cards in your wallet at yours. Check the name on the card every time you sign for something and/or the card is taken away for even a short period of time. Many people just take back the credit card without even looking at it, thinking that it has to be theirs.

FOR YOUR OWN SAKE, DEVELOP THE HABIT OF CHECKING YOUR CREDIT CARD EACH TIME IT IS RETURNED TO YOU AFTER A TRANSACTION!

SCENE 3

Yesterday I went into a pizza restaurant to pick up an order that I had called in. I paid by using my Visa Check Card which, of course, is linked directly to my checking account. The young man behind the counter took my card, swiped it, then laid it flat on the counter as he waited for the approval, which is pretty standard procedure. While he waited, he picked up his cell phone and started dialing. I noticed the phone because it is the same model I have, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Then I heard a click that sounded like my phone sounds when I take a picture.

He then gave me back my card but kept the phone in his hand as if he was still pressing buttons. Meanwhile, I'm thinking: I wonder what he is taking a picture of, oblivious to what was really going on. It then dawned on me: the only thing there was as my credit card, so now I'm paying close attention to what he is doing. He set his phone on the counter, leaving it open. About five seconds later, I heard the chime that tells you that the picture has been saved. Now I'm standing there struggling with the fact
that this boy just took a picture of my credit card. Yes, he played it off well, because had we not had the same kind of phone, I probably would never have known what happened. Needless to say, I immediately canceled that card as I was walking out of the pizza parlor. All I am saying is, be aware of your surroundings at all times. Whenever you are using your credit cards, take caution and don't be careless. Notice who is standing near you and what they are doing when you use your card. Be aware of phones because many have a camera phone these days. When you are in a restaurant and the waiter/waitress brings your card and receipt for you to sign, make sure you scratch the number off.

Some restaurants are using only the last four digits, but a lot of them are still putting the whole thing on there. I have already been a victim of credit card fraud and, believe me, it is not fun. The truth is that they can get you even when you are careful, but don't make it easy for them.
Click to expand...

* Editor's note: You might want to memorize the 3 or 4 digit number following the credit card # on the back of the card and scratch it out so no one can copy it. A lot of internet transactions ask you for that number these days.

Sgt. Tibbs · Mar 2, 2005

Snopes classifies it as "possible, but not common", and goes on to say that it's one of those email warnings that's impossible to prove one way or the other.

This made me giggle:

The first two entries describe scammers who supposedly switch expired credit cards for valid credit cards, thereby enabling them to run up thousands of dollars in charges before the victims realize their cards are missing. This isn't a scheme likely to be successful in most cases, for a number of reasons:
Not all credit cards look alike. Common credit cards such as VISA and MasterCard vary quite widely in appearance, featuring different logos (based upon the issuing financial institutions), different colors of plastic, and even different (customer-selected) background designs. For this scenario to work, the putative thieves would have to carry around a plethora of different styles of cards and hope to hit a long shot by coincidentally matching one of their cards to a victim's particular card.

The deception will be obvious the next time the victim uses (or, presumably, even looks at) his card, which doesn't give the scammers much time to try to run up a huge charge on the stolen card via many small purchases. Contrary to the claim made above, most credit card issuers will flag as suspect thousands of dollars' worth of charges made on a credit card within a short period of time, even if none of those charges is for a large amount.

No explanation is offered for how these scammers supposedly come by their handy supply of expired credit cards. Most customers discard their expired cards by throwing them into the trash, usually after having cut them in two (or otherwise mutilated them).

Frankly, if you're habitually leaving your wallet unattended in an easily-opened locker, you've got a lot more to be concerned about than potential visits from card-swapping scammers.
Click to expand...

http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/cardscams.asp

Turcoloco · Mar 2, 2005

I agree but 'possible but not common' is realistic, meaning if it was possible and common there would be no need for these types of warnings as it would be well known! That said, I am much more skeptical about my online purchases nowadays!

Sgt. Tibbs · Mar 3, 2005

Being skeptical is good...it helps make sure your purchases are secure. However, believing every email warning of fraud to come through your inbox is another thing entirely. I just look at Snopes and draw my own conclusions, and since I go to many sites where people post things that I find on Snopes regularly, I try to provide that information when it comes up.

tux2460 · Mar 4, 2005

you know, I would have asked to speak to the manager in scene two and three. In scene three, I would have made sure the police were involved and kept his phone as evidence. But that's just me, I also probably would have been arrested for disturbing the peace or something for the hell I'd raise in those situations.

G.T. · Mar 4, 2005

For any reasonably small purchases, including restaurants, I pay cash. Old fashioned maybe, but it's foolproof. And I never pay with a bank check-card, since that CAN open up your entire checking account to a thief.

Log in or Sign up

FYI: Credit Card Fraud prevention

Turcoloco MajorGeek

Sgt. Tibbs Ultra Geek

Turcoloco MajorGeek

Sgt. Tibbs Ultra Geek

tux2460 Private First Class

G.T. R.I.P February 4, 2007. You will be missed.