CREDIT CARDSTwo weeks ago our daughter had her identity stolen - on one card. It had to be someone she knew because they got into her account. Changed her pin number. Called the credit card company and they changed the address. When she tried to get in through the Internet she couldn't get in to her own account. She checks it frequently on the Internet. So she calls the company and they give her a hard time believing who she is! Come to find out it was only changed that day and they had bought one big ticket item for $1ooo. As she was changing it - another charge came in for $700 - approval from a store which was DENIED!
That is how fast your identity can be taken and items bought.
Hubs and I started a new credit card a month ago for it's rewards. Yesterday we got a call and after verifying things with them - they asked it this one charge was ours and it wasn't. She closed the account without even asking us a thing and we get a new one in a week!
People it's sad out there. My sister things I look at things through rose colored glasses and I admit I do - but sometimes the glasses come off for awhile and today they d id.
FRIENDS, BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!
Now Linda B. sent me this:
Subject: Not all thieves are stupid.(a MUST READ)
This gives us something to think about with all our new electronic technology.
GPS
A couple of weeks ago a friend told me that someone she knew had their car broken into while they were at a football game. Their car was parked on the green which was adjacent to the football stadium and specially allotted to football fans.
Things stolen from the car included a garage door remote control, some money and a GPS which had been prominently mounted on the dashboard.
When the victims got home, they found that their house had been ransacked and just about everything worth anything had been stolen.
The thieves had used the GPS to guide them to the house.
They then used the garage remote control to open the garage door and gain entry to the house. The thieves knew the owners were at the football game, they knew what time the game was scheduled to finish and so they knew how much time they had to clean out the house. It would appear that they had brought a truck to empty the house of its contents.
Something to consider if you have a GPS - don't put your home address in it... Put a nearby address (like a store or gas station) so you can still find your way home if you need to, but no one else would know where you live if your GPS were stolen.
MOBILE PHONES
I never thought of this.......
This lady has now changed her habit of how she lists her names on her mobile phone after her handbag was stolen.
Her handbag, which contained her cell phone, credit card, wallet... Etc...was stolen.
20 minutes later when she called her hubby, from a pay phone telling him what had happened, hubby says 'I received your text asking about our Pin number and I've replied a little while ago.'
When they rushed down to the bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn. The thief had actually used the stolen cell phone to text 'hubby' in the contact list and got hold of the pin number.
Within 20 minutes he had withdrawn all the money from their bank account.
Moral of the lesson:
Do not disclose the relationship between you and the people in your contact list.
Avoid using names like Home, Honey, Hubby, Sweetheart, Dad, Mom, etc....
And very importantly, when sensitive info is being asked through texts, CONFIRM by calling back.
Also, when you're being texted by friends or family to meet them somewhere, be sure to call back to confirm that the message came from them. If you don't reach them, be very careful about going places to meet 'family and friends' who text you..
Have any advice or an experience to share?
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY!
"I always wondered why somebody doesn't do something about that. Then I realized I was somebody."
– Lily Tomlin
50 comments:
Excellent information! I cancelled all of my credit cards several years ago and no GPS I have turned off GPS on my cell / digital camera and also all mail comes through email as I am gone 10 hours of the day and not able to monitor my possible mailbox vistors. True Story: Several years I came home from work around 5:30 was the arrival and I noticed something was "missing" what is it, looking around I could not "see" for looking so hard and then I noticed a lot of bark on the road, mud from the yard onto the road and huge tire tracks in my yard....SOMEONE HAD STOLEN MY TREE"....LOL ... seriously....so I called landlord, nope but he was outraged over it, called neighbors none saw anything that day they all worked or was about town...called police and there was a few Male Mexicans < not a slur on Mexicans > not the least bit > new to the area and they were going around cutting down trees and selling the trees for firewood....now ...what put the "awareness" in me was they had been watching me long enough to KNOW my routine....and I NEVER knew it.... so yes we must become aware of all things ... Thanks for your post
So sorry about your daughter, Sandie! What a hassle to get it all sorted out! Terrible too that it was probably someone she knew! All great advice you listed here; I wouldn't have even thought about the GPS system to be used like that! Have to remind hubby to take ours out of the car! Thanks for all the great advice this morning!
have a good weekend!
betty
Last year on vacation, I used my debit card to pay for a meal at a restaurant. The waitress took my card and returned shortly with my receipt. The next day, I checked my account (from a secure site) and noticed that there were 3 charges to an amusement park in Florida, I was in Colorado. When I called the bank, they cancelled my card, but I wasn't close to another of their branches, so had to wait 3 days to get another card. In total there were $12,000 of fraudulent charges, plus the hassle of having no debit card for three days. The bank told me that this is quite common--when they have your card, it only takes a second to get your number, and security code on the back, so they can use it for internet purchases. Now, I carry cash when I eat out.
oh my good golly, thats amazing!!!!!
Someone charged a $50 charge oncc, 2 months later a couple hundred $$ charge ... didn't catch it because hubby travelled a LOT back then. BUT I DID catch the $5,000 cruise charge!! I called up hubby & asked him '& who are YOU entertaining on a cruise?' Welllllll, yes I did say that. Needless to say, our cc had been hijacked. Even more ironic was just 3 days before this had happened I had cancelled the insurance coverage for such incidents on all cc's except this one.
TY for your sweet notes, my friend. I am coming along nicely.
Have a lovely weekend.
TTFN ~
Hugs,
Marydon
One always has to be vigilant. Our card has been compromised a few times, and each time the cc company has called us to ask about a charge (in Shreveport Lousisiana!) We always make sure to let the company know when we are going to be traveling. That way they are on the alert for variations in our routine, and flag them.
So sorry about your daughter, Sandie! I hope things are OK for her now.
Those are all great ideas!
Thieves will go to any means, won't they??
Thanks for the info about the GPS system. I told my husband and he is going to take "home" off our GPS. I feel so sorry for those people and everyone who is a victim of crimes like this.
some good food for thought.
i've had my credit card info stolen a few times too. very frustrating, but the card company does a great job in closing the account and not charging me a thing.
You have sure given us a lot to consider this morning. I'm so sorry that your daughter had to go through all of that.
Thanks for the tips, Sandie. Bless your heart.
i live my life looking through dark glasses and sometimes wish i could look through your rose colored glasses. i have heard of all of this and more and last Dec 12th we had our checking accoutn wiped out by someone who copied a check, i only wrote 2 last year since i am online always and debit cards. anyway seems they sell copies of the check, the person uses the information to order new checks and has them mailed to them, then they write checks. they signed my name and they were cashed in PA and I live in FL. our police dept sends out warning emails of all the scams going on and it is scary. so keep you rose colored glasses, because i see danger everywhere. they arrested 2 waiters at Apple-bees for doing the credit card number stealing. they scan the card number and it sends it to another state and they use the numbers on line. also we have a problem here with them putting scanners on the gaas pumps and stealing card numbers. technology has made it easy for the thieves.
That is a scary thought about having your identity stolen. I'm so sorry to hear that happened to your daughter. I'm glad to know that it quickly got resolved though. I always wonder, though, does the person ever get caught that does that? It seems that we get things resolved and move about our merry way. But a crime just happened to you! I hope they catch whoever did this because they may continue until they're caught.
My office hosted a seminar a couple of weeks ago about this kind of identity theft and I was amazed at some of the things that go on. They did talk about the GPS thefts. The bottom line is that we can't be too paranoid or too careful these days....there are new identity theft scams cropping up every day.
Wonderful information Sandie. I actually copied this in an email and sent it to family/friends.
Sorry to hear about your daughter's problems. I'm afraid that's not unusual. Keith went to the ATM machine a couple of weeks ago and couldn't get money. It said he was overdrawn, so he went home and checked his account and there were "checks" written to different stores and he didn't even have checks with those numbers. He worried all night and went to the bank in the morning. He got all his money back and the overdraft charges were taken off, but he had to get all new accounts. I guess they somehow got his account number and had checks printed. He reported it to the Austin police, but they don't investigate because there's little chance of finding them and there are so many reports they receive. I'm afraid it's just a sign of the times. I get our town's weekly police report online and every week there are three or four and this is a town of 25,000 people. Probably only a few report it to the police. There are bound to be more.
I don't use my portable GPS often, and when I do, I stick it in my purse rather than leaving it in the car.
It stinks that we have to be aware of all this, but we do. And our patterns of living can't always be changed so what is a person to do? Being friendly with neighbors helps as they are more likely to spot unusual activity at your home in your absence.
If we get something new that might be attractive to thieves, I break down the boxes now and turn the cardboard inside out so that nothing announces a new TV or other electronics.
Having said all this, while we need to be aware, we also need to remember that most people are good and honest. Balance being careful and alert but don't toss your rose colored glasses out. I don't want to live in constant fear.
Good info my friend! All this is sad but true in today's world. So sorry about the hacked credit cards, it happened to Mr ALC not long ago. We all must be careful! hugs, Linda
Hi Chatty. Some good points for us to look out for there. It's a sad old world sometimes, isn't it. When we were given pin numbers instead of having to sign a slip of paper when we purchased something, it was all supposed to be so much more secure for us all. Bah! I didn't believe that for one moment. The criminals are always one step ahead of the game. It pays to try to keep really aware these days. Hugs.
It is getting really scary out there. My Daughters boyfriend had his stolen during the summer and they drove to their town to use the credit cards. Luckily they were caught, but this is getting really out of hand.
Hi Sandie,
Thank you for all the good advices today. It's a strange world we live in, and you cannot be too careful these days. I've become very careful anyway. There will always be people out there trying to destroy for others, It's sad really.
Have a lovely Saturday!
Hugs x
Scary stuff. Thanks for the information.
I am so sympathetic. I had something happen over 15 years ago -- in the practically dark ages of internet use -- and my account at Lord & Taylor was hijacked by a Lord & Taylor employee. After a fair amount of paperwork this was cleared up, but I was less than impressed by the store's response and did not reopen my account. I've been quite wary since then.
What a coincidence! We went to Best Buy last night to buy our son a Kindle for his birthday. Our rewards card was under someone else's name! They can't get anything from the card, it just gives you points for what you buy, but you have to record what you buy yourself! It took us forever to get a new card and figure things out.
It's happened to me on my debit card...
The world is full of crooks you always have to be on your guard.
Hope everything else is good with you take care xx
I just can't believe how many dishonest people there are sometimes! I don't like to use credit cards or debit cards for the reasons talked about here. My son had his wallet with all his info and cards stolen a couple of years ago. Had his social security # on something. He had to get everything replaced and the cards were already being used! I'm still hoping nothing comes from his ss # info being out there somewhere.
Sorry this happened to your daughter. Thanks for the good advice.
Have a nice weekend!
Sorry your daughter had her ID stolen. Terrible thing to happen! Thanks for passing along the other stories. They're amazing and not in a good way. Shared them with my hubby so he knows never to answer a text from me asking for our pin number ;) Hope you're having a nice weekend!
These stories are very instructive and good reminders to be careful! Thanks.
Thank you for posting this. I hang on to my purse for dear life.
Excellent information. It is so sad what our world is coming to and at this time of year it gets even worse because people want to find a way to get presents for people, they get desperate. We protect ourselves with LifeLink.
So sorry to hear about your daughter. This is some great information. A couple of things I had never heard of.
Have a nice Sunday Sandie!
wow I never thought of the cell phone one. I had heard about the GPS though.
I got lucky, my account was hacked into with my debit card but luckily since there has been a lot of it going on the bank flagged it and nothing was taken. Other people in my area weren't so lucky
Wow! A lot of good advice in one post! I am lucky to be an old fuddy duddy...no gps and my phone won't rext! lol Happy week!...hugs...Debbie
I often wonder if I shouldn't "just" bury my money like my great Aunt Laura did during the Great Depression.
Good and informative post Sandie!
Oh my goodness, Sandie. That was terrible news about your daughter's card being stolen. So very, very sorry.
Oh, I would HATE to have my identify stolen. Hate, hate, hate it.
Take care and hope you have a nice Sunday. Susan
When I was a kid, someone came into our house and stole my Mom's purse. My Dad had accidentially left the front door wide open as he was carrying something out to his car, and Mom had left her purse out in the open...someone walking by saw it, saw the door was open and just slipped in and out without anyone knowing. It's been at least 20 years since then and she still sometimes has issues related to that incident.
Lots of good info here, C.C! We've had our card compromise about a half dozen times or more. Never have we been stuck with any charges that we didn't make.
..
Isn't it sad how bad people are getting these days....and if you ask the Boss he'll tell you I blame the moral fiber of the country going down the toilet ever since Bill Clinton was in office.....things weren't too bad until he lied to the world...now it's acceptable to be morally corrupt......
Good stuff! I'll tell ya, this information can't be repeated enough!
So sorry to hear of your daughter's challenges -- what an insult that the cc company at first wouldn't believe her?
Knock wood, I've not been compromised, and check my accounts on-line every day. (Sometimes twice ... ya, I'm paranoid that way!)
Very interesting info!!
I am going to take my address off the gps tomorrow. Thanks Trish
My mail was stolen from my mailbox, my signature soak off my checks that were sent to pay bills and the checks rewritten using my husbands name who had just passed away the week before.
When a store called and asked if my husband had bought the purchases..I almost fainted! It took an already heartbroken and grieving me days to get it all straightened out..as if things were not already bad enough. A horrible time of my life.
Grandson just has identity stolen this past Tuesday while we were in Pasadina. He recieved an email from his bank while we were having dinner celebrating my birthday. What a mess and how horrified he and his new wife were! A time for extra caution..
This has been rather shocking to read, Sandie. Thank you for taking the time to inform all of us of potential dangers.
Sadly, it happens all the time. My credit card was hacked about 2 years ago. I actually found out when the credit card was denied when I was trying to buy groceries. Not cool. My mom has had hers hacked several times. So frustrating and scary.
Ask me how much I love that cartoon. A LOT!!!
Dear Sandie, It is very scary how easily one can loose their identity and just turn their world upside down. That you for reminding everyone. blessings, Catherine ox
Great information!
Sorry about your troubles. We got two separate debit card numbers stolen this past summer. And it had just happened last year, too.
Our bank said most often it happens at restaurants and gas stations. They suggested that you go inside the gas station if you're going to use a card, and not use the card at the pump. Often times thieves put "dummy" slots on the pumps.
There are evil people out there, for sure. I don't have a GPS device, but the cell phone warning was well-taken. I'm changing some things in my address book.
Seems to me that technology has just created more ways for us to be taken advantage of...
Stay alert!
Okay, this really causes you to think. Not in a good way. I hate that there are people out there who can, will and do these kind of things!! It is just not right.
Seriously, it is sickening! I must be more careful.
I sure must be wearing the rose colored glasses. I would have never thought how bad things are getting. I have to fix my cell phone now and pass all this great info on to my children. Thanks for sharing.
And sometimes all it takes is someone watching to see that the house is empty for an hour or two. It's scary out there -- I guess we just have to do what we can and not worry about the rest.
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