Got my VISA card statement in the mail today and opened it right away...it was much larger than I expected...$300.00 to be exact! Seems that there was a charge to a soft ware/ website company in India, whom I have never heard of before and whose services I don't need! Called immediately, like within 15 minutes, to dispute the charge and get it removed from my account. Now I am sure that none of the Monkeys has ever had this sort of thing happen to them! But always go over your statement line by line...purchase by purchase! I just hope that I don't have to get another credit card because of this...or worse, have a bunch of sexy farm girls wanting to send me pictures all the time!
I have the app for my CC. I check it daily. Have had "shenningans" before, and gotten it fixed quickly. Paper is too slow, too easy to get in trouble. BTDT.
Good catch WildBilly. You have also noticed that it's easily reversed with a credit card. Now had this been a debit card, your experience would have been seriously different. Those funds would have been removed from the linked account (checking or savings) and then it could be weeks to months before you would have gotten the money back .. if ever. I have an account that had an ATM withdraw on it to the tune of 500 dollars. I explained to them that I never had a debit/atm card for this account and how the hell could i withdraw it. I was lucky, had i had a debit card, they would have to investigate and review the camera footage from the remote location and that it could take up to 8 weeks. In this case, after having the account for 20+ years and never a debit card, it was refunded right then and there. Otherwise, i'd be SOL until after the investigation and hope it was in my favor. Yep, I have a debit card hooked up to another bank and account but only the minimum in there. I can write myself a check and mobile deposit and withdraw same day if i need cash when out of town.
My credit card balances are never so large that I can't pay in full each month (credit card companies HATE folks like me), and the charges are never so many that I can't remember them. However, people with large balances and multi-page statements might miss a few false charges...HELL, I might have not noticed had it been for $19.99, or something like that, but $300.00 kinda stood out!
On your CC site you can set it up so you get a notice on your phone every time your CC is used. Have had cards used not by me and notified CC company the same day.
When CC’s were first introduced, the Comptroller of Currency setup a whole set of regulations that made the issuing Bank responsible for any fraud, until the transaction cleared thru the debt/check clearing system… Debt Cards do not have the same regulatory rules, or protections…
From 2001 to 2006 I had my own corporation, with my name as part of the business name. Clients paying by credit cards was never an option. Starting about 2009, and repeating every couple of years since, I'll get a couple of calls within a month or so from people wondering what a charge from my company on their CC statements is for. Usually for amounts under $50. I explain to them that while the business was mine, A) I closed my business in 2006, but since the Secretary of State in my state still keeps available for public access a list of every business that was ever registered, someone has B) setup a merchant account somewhere in the name of my old business, and C) their CC number has ended up on the dark web and has been purchased as part of a list of valid numbers. So, D) dispute the charge as fraudulent, and E) get a new credit card, as that one's been hacked. While I understand the how and why this keeps happening, what always amazes me is how few calls I get. Knowing the business name I am easy for someone to find me at my current employer. I'm assuming a lot of credit cards are getting hit with these small charges every time the scam gets recycled, so either most people are catching the fraudulent charges and are just calling their bank to dispute the charge, without ever reaching out to the obvious named business (doubtful), or they're just not paying attention and the fraudsters are getting a huge payoff (most probable).
My credit card company alerts me when a purchase is being made on my card outside my normal consumer area. They get real upset when I travel and do not notify them. I get a text and email when a purchase is made over $100. The caught someone who had gotten my card # and used a cloned CC to purchase $2500 in Apple products in Georgia. Cops caught them in the store.
when I traveled for biz and had to submit expense reports - credit cards were an absolute must >>> had two for just biz purposes and a third for personal ..... learned early on to match up receipts against monthly statements like a mafia bookkeeper - it was my $$$ on the line .... caught a few charges that didn't make the expense reports and I was able to re-submit for the $$$$$ .... ALLL kinds of restaurant fraud over the years - good many waitresses that wanted more than the 10-15-20% tips that I was allowed to add to the bills - some crooked restaurants .... had an interesting card fraud situation a number of years ago - got a Fraud Alert call from one of my biz credit card companies - I'd rotate cards at least twice a year - hadn't used this particular card in several years - this person had the credit card numbers but no current security code # - and the attempted card usage was in Oregon in an old employer's backyard - the location was a pool supply store that my old boss bought his crap for his koi pond - an old boss that was on the verge of bankruptcy since I first met him - 3 mortgages and not an ounce of credit available to him .... called my old employer - talked to the CEO that I wasn't familiar with - he recognized my name however - I explained the situation - he became indignant & defensive when I accused my old boss of the fraud attempt - he quikly shut up when I told him we all knew about his wife $$$$ problems and bankruptcy sliding - told him to have The Conversation toot sweet with the deadbeat or I'd call both the local PD detective squad and also the TX corporate headquarters with a formal HR complaint .....
The problem with this charge was that, like many purchases nowadays, it would have been made over the internet.
you need to call credit card customer service and give them a heads up about any travel plans out of the norm - especially travel outside the country - they'll cut off your card first time you try using it .... if you got any low charge limit deal on the card(s) >>> good idea to get a temp balloon credit increase for emergencies
Yeah, nothing ruins a vacation like having your credit cards frozen! Some guy in Cameroon made an internet purchase from a soft-ware company in India and used MY credit card number!
just used my credit card to re-new my driver's license online - IL Secretary of State's official website - almost the next day my credit card company is calling - they locked up the card due to attempted online fraud purchases - the credit card computer user matrix auto knew it wasn't me .... Absolutely know it was the state payment that was the fraud source - filed a complaint with Internal Affairs - they have a HUGE hole in their security .....
About the time that this happened, my Mother was in the hospital, and late one night I attempted to use a vending machine. I never did get the drink I wanted, and I canceled the transaction. I'm pretty sure that the vending machine had a scanner on it and that was how they got my card number. NEVER USE AN ATM, VENDING MACHINE, GAS PUMP, ETC., AS IT MIGHT HAVE A SCANNER ON IT!!!
