Watch your accounts very closely

[CometMan]

Hey everyone, just thought I'd give you a friendly reminder. I just received a call from my bank, and spent an hour on the phone with them, clearing up the fact that there was no way that a credit card I hadn't used in 3 months could have been used 5 times in an hour in locations that were 50 miles from where I was! So please watch your accounts very closely!

[Ace-Garageguy]

Was it stolen, cloned or did someone just use the number?

[CometMan]

Was it stolen, cloned or did someone just use the number?

I think it was probably cloned Bill, maybe someone with a scanner of some sort walked up next to me and got the number while it was in my wallet in my pocket!

[Ace-Garageguy]

Well then...if you're carrying RFID credit cards, it's time to put the old tinfoil hat on your wallet.      http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/security/how-to/a1142/4206464/

[oldnslow]

All my cards are carried in an aluminum case I picked up at the flea market. Works great

[Tom Geiger]

It happens but the banks are pretty good at figuring it out. And they know it wasn't you so you suffer no penalties other than getting a new card number and having to remember which bills you have on automatic payment to that card!  

[Rob Hall]

I had some fraudulent activity (purchases at a Best Buy and gas station in LA when I was in Phoenix) on a Bank of America Visa a couple months ago...their fraud division contacted via email and phone, cleared it up right way.  I check all my accounts daily online, so nothing gets past me..

[Mark]

A couple of years ago, my bank called me at work to verify a charge I had made earlier that day, at a gas station on my way to work.  It was valid.  They neglected to ask me about the one before that: a $900 charge at a men's store in California!  I've never been further west than Denver, and can probably count the over $500 charges I have made on my fingers.  I always thought the card companies checked on transactions that fell outside of an established pattern.  The CA charge was found to be a "walk-in" transaction as opposed to an online purchase.  I didn't see that one until the statement arrived; I thought it was hilarious that that transaction was immediately before the one they called to verify.  

[Tom Geiger]

Mark reminded me of this one...

Many years ago at work I get called into the VPs office to be told that they were taking my company credit card away because I was making personal purchases on it. And they'd be docking my salary for the charged amount.  I only used the card for trips and I hadn't used it in months.  I asked to see what the issue was and there was a charge  "$3500    Wheel City    Pretoria".

So I told him that Pretoria was in South Africa!  I Google it and sure enough there is a bling wheel place called "Wheel City" there.  So I ask this senior person why nobody in the whole chain  (people in finance, administration etc) knew that Pretoria was in South Africa!    AND that they need to ask questions BEFORE accusing and penalizing people!

I called the credit card company and they instantly saw it as fraud and straightened out my account.  No apologies from the stupid company though!

[CometMan]

Thanks for the input guys! Like some of you have mentioned, I also check all my accounts at least once a week, pull a credit report once a month, very rarely sign up for automatic payments, etc., etc., but they got me anyway! But, that was my idea in starting this thread, was for some to share their stories with everyone, so if anyone here still thinks that this type of activity is very rare, or won't happen to them, that no matter how careful you try to be, it can, and unfortunately these days, probably will happen at some point!

[Harry P.]

I'm not a customer so I have no firsthand knowledge, but I have heard good things about LifeLock. They monitor everything, work to prevent identity theft, and I think they offer a million dollar ID theft guaranteed coverage. Might be worthwhile to check them out. Like I said, not a customer... so this isn't any sort of recommendation. But I have heard good things about their services.

[unclescott58]

I look at my accounts via online almost everyday. Sometimes, several times a day. Wells Fargo has contacted me at least once to check on the use of my credit card. It was a small purchase, but an unusual purchase for me to put on my credit card rather than one of my debit cards. It was me making the purchase. Still I'm glad they checked.

[Tom Geiger]

Wells Fargo has contacted me at least once to check on the use of my credit card. It was a small purchase, but an unusual purchase for me to put on my credit card rather than one of my debit cards. It was me making the purchase. Still I'm glad they checked.

The banks have computer algorithms that watch for all kinds of patterns.  I wouldn't expect less. It's their business.

This past year I got a call from my bank. It coincided with an email from Paypal that my bank was refusing the charges on my eBay purchases.  I had started a new area of my stamp collection and had made several Paypal purchases under $5 each for a few days in a row.  My bank called that "nibbling" which is when a fraudulent user hits an account  many times for amounts that normally are under the bank radar.   I agreed that it was legit and everything was okay.

[Petetrucker07]

I've had this happen a couple times, about 10 years apart. Some online purchase to some company in a different country. The bank called me and put a stop to it both times. 

I've also had it happen when I deposit my paycheck in my town, then use my ATM card in a city 100 to 500 miles away the next morning. Being a truck driver, my withdraws can be pretty far apart and they still call to verify. 

[cowboy rich]

With the way I travel I've been shut down more than once, I'm glad they do it but really didn't want to spend 2 hours in Green River, Wy. explaining that I was moving when I already called and told them that, in the mean time I needed fuel, and to get another 500 miles down the road.!    Money was safe though,just had to make up the lost time.

Rich

[Ace-Garageguy]

It is nice if they call you BEFORE they decline a charge. Back in 2009 I got stuck halfway across the country on a road trip with no way to buy gas or lodging until I got the card mess sorted. Since then, I always carry plenty of US cash...still accepted almost everywhere. 

Edited March 28, 2016 by Ace-Garageguy

[peteski]

By now all (or most) RFID cards have been taken out of circulation.  New cards either don't have the RFID circuit  (plain cards) or they have the new "smart" chip on them (with the matal contacts visible on the front of the card.  Those new cards cannot be read remotely - they have to be physically inserted in the smart card reader.  Those metal card wallets are no longer needed or useful.  it ssme that banks realided how easy was to skim the info from RFID cards so they dumped them.

RFID card will have this symbol on it (and won't have any metal contacts on the card):

The smart chip cards will have metal contacts on the front like this:

 

 

 

Both types of cards usually still have the old-fashioned magnetic strip on the back which also cannot be read remotely.

[Petetrucker07]

Maybe it's my own stubbornness or being paranoid, I try to only keep enough in my account to satisfy the auto pay bills and any bank charges or auto savings transfer. My account rarely has any large amount for very long, a day or 2 at most. When work is slow, like now, there's nothing to a few dollars in there. It also helps my credit is screwed anyway. They almost couldn't get a library card with my info.

[Fabrux]

You know for being two of the most similar countries on Earth I often forget just how different the banking systems of Canada and the US are. We've had chip debit cards for about eight years now, tap + chip debit cards for 3-5 years. On the other hand, Visa debit cards that work as a credit card online but draw from your bank accounts are only a couple years old here. My current bank card is all three