hockeyboy Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 My bank notified me yesterday of suspicious activity on my card. Turns out someone was trying to use my information in another state. I'm pleased with how quickly my Bank noticed it/contacted me. They were only able to make one small charge, which I was reimbursed for and then tried to make a bigger purchase, but were denied. I closed that banking account and have checked all my other credit cards etc. I also did a credit report and don't see anything out of the ordinary. I guess I'm not sure if I should be concerned still or if I've taken all the steps? I'm not sure what the laws are against this, but I really think whatever they are, they aren't steep enough. As far as I'm concerned, you try stealing someones identity, you should be strung up. Ya...I'm pretty angry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avman Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 It's not that there aren't any laws against this. There are. It is finding the person committing the crime and nailing them with it that is hard. You did the right thing. Banks have systems to catch suspicious behavior like this and they shut down the persons account as soon as possible. But still not every situation can be caught automatically. Monitor your accounts very carefully and if anything comes up make sure to notify your bank, credit cards, and the credit bureau. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renaissancewoman101 Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 You didn't have to close the checking account, just close the debit card that was used and have the bank re-issue you a new debit card. Just check on your credit reports once every few months and report anything out of the ordinary (accounts you didn't open up, etc), and you should be fine. Do you have credit monitoring? That helps since it will send you notification if someone tries to open accounts in your name, or if balances on your accounts change significantly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeyboy Posted March 29, 2010 Author Share Posted March 29, 2010 The person tried to use my card at a wal-mart for a pretty large purchase but were denied. I wish I knew how they got my info. Do banks work with the stores like this to try to catch the person or is it to prevalent that they don't bother? I wonder if I should call that store and follow up with them myself...or the local police. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeyboy Posted March 29, 2010 Author Share Posted March 29, 2010 You didn't have to close the checking account, just close the debit card that was used and have the bank re-issue you a new debit card. Just check on your credit reports once every few months and report anything out of the ordinary (accounts you didn't open up, etc), and you should be fine. Do you have credit monitoring? That helps since it will send you notification if someone tries to open accounts in your name, or if balances on your accounts change significantly. Sorry...that's what I meant I did. I don't have credit monitoring, but probably will now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cognitive_Canine Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 It's not that there aren't any laws against this. There are. It is finding the person committing the crime and nailing them with it that is hard. You did the right thing. Banks have systems to catch suspicious behavior like this and they shut down the persons account as soon as possible. But still not every situation can be caught automatically. Monitor your accounts very carefully and if anything comes up make sure to notify your bank, credit cards, and the credit bureau. Yes. Identity theft is actually an easy crime in that the person you are robbing is faceless and might as well be a set of numbers. Most likely, this is by someone you know. Same thing happened to my aunt. The credit card company found out what places the thief was going to and told my aunt. My aunt told people that she worked with that they caught the thief on video and she'd be watching the tape with police later that week. The woman who had been stealing from her came forward crying and apologizing later that day. It ended up being her boss. Get everything changed as recommended by your bank, invest in a shredder to get rid of anything with your number on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fr0z3n Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 The person tried to use my card at a wal-mart for a pretty large purchase but were denied. I wish I knew how they got my info. Do banks work with the stores like this to try to catch the person or is it to prevalent that they don't bother? I wonder if I should call that store and follow up with them myself...or the local police. Good thing someone posted about this subject... Well banks do not work with stores like this, but they have systems of detecting fraud (but the thief can still use your card and make a small purchase) Some of the systems are the bank will detect unusual charges on your account; they have a system w/c alerts the if patterns related to fraud are detected... There are also ways that a thief can use your info, like they can buy it at a black market website (I know some sites selling *****), or someone has a friend like a cashier that copied your info and used it... It's really hard to catch the culprit, specially if the charge is made online... About the law, I think in the US, they will just investigate the case if the charge that has been made is $1500/$2000 above, below that and it will be just ignored... But there are also law/rules for the banks that issue your cards that if ID theft or fraud has been made, then you are not liable or you will just pay $50... Most of the time this is waved and you wont pay anything and the charge will be reversed (if you managed to ask request for a chargeback, most of the time within 60 days upon notice)... Its still easy to steal/buy cc info until now but it's a bit hard to use it but it's still possible, there are still lots of ways... Be careful when using your cards... if you still have more questions relating to ID theft/fraud, feel free to ask me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeyboy Posted March 29, 2010 Author Share Posted March 29, 2010 So this person made a small charge (which I'll be reimbursed for) and then tried to make a $300 charge but were denied. You think this will just be ignored? I wouldn't doubt that for a second, but that bothers me. I supposed following up with the stored/police would do absolutely no good too... My bank alerted me quickly of this, which made me feel better. I check my account daily, but they noticed it first. The charges are "pending" on my account right now and they told me to call back when they go thru and they can take them off then. That normal? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fr0z3n Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 So this person made a small charge (which I'll be reimbursed for) and then tried to make a $300 charge but were denied. You think this will just be ignored? I wouldn't doubt that for a second, but that bothers me. I supposed following up with the stored/police would do absolutely no good too... My bank alerted me quickly of this, which made me feel better. I check my account daily, but they noticed it first. The charges are "pending" on my account right now and they told me to call back when they go thru and they can take them off then. That normal? a smal charge then a big one is a red flag for the banks... though they suspected it, they will contact you first if you will approve the transaction, otherwise they will cancel it and while they are trying to reach you, they will temporary freeze your account... if you noticed a charge that you did not make on your statement, you may review it clearly or might want to call the bank and report that the card was stolen so they can freeze te account immediately... About the charge that was made... yes it will be just ignored... Dont worry though, consumers are not liable for fraud (if you followed their rules about chargebacks) because most of the time, the merchant is the one reliable for fraudalent use of cards, that means it;s their lost, not yours... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fr0z3n Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 BTW, does your card has been stolen or it's still on your hand?... Because reading your case, this may be the scenario: A. The culprit bought your cc info and hired someone to make a duplicate (see that black strip? its a magnetic strip and all your info is right there) B. He somewhat managed to stole your cc info and know someone who can make a duplicate... What I see here is that the culprit has an experience on doing stuffs like this because he managed to make a replica (assuming that your card is still in your hands)... His pattern is more advanced unlike beginners where mostly likely will use the cc info that they bought online and purchase some stuffs in the internet... CC info ranges from $2-$20 per card, most have a minimum purchase of $100 meaning someone can buy 50-5 cc info for just 100 bucks and can use it depending on their knowledge about fraud... there are also gadgets w/c are called skimmers that copy the info from the magnetic strip, be aware of this things... there are also gadgets that can make a replica of your card using the info that was stolen, meaning they can create a physical card and can use it in retail stores not just over the internet... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renaissancewoman101 Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 My bank alerted me quickly of this, which made me feel better. I check my account daily, but they noticed it first. The charges are "pending" on my account right now and they told me to call back when they go thru and they can take them off then. That normal? Yes, this is normal. The bank has to wait till the charge comes through and becomes "real" in their books, before they can reverse it. I had that happen with my checkcard before. I caught the charge while it was still in the "pending" state and notified my bank. They told me to wait till it came through as a charge, then they reversed it and issued me a new card with new numbers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fr0z3n Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 you also need to wait usually around 10 days for this to happen (the charge to be successfully reversed)... rest assured, you wont pay anything... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeyboy Posted March 29, 2010 Author Share Posted March 29, 2010 I still have my debit card, I did not lose one. I made some purchases around home Saturday night and at the same time this person was trying to make other purchases hundred of miles away. So I think that set off the alarms with my bank. Him having a debit card in my name (that doesn't work)....should I be concerned about that? What can he do with that now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renaissancewoman101 Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 I still have my debit card, I did not lose one. I made some purchases around home Saturday night and at the same time this person was trying to make other purchases hundred of miles away. So I think that set off the alarms with my bank. Him having a debit card in my name (that doesn't work)....should I be concerned about that? What can he do with that now? If your bank changes your debit card (since there is now fraud on your old card), the thief won;t be able to use your debit card and he will move on to other prey. Why are you so worried about this? The bank has been notified and will make good on the fraudulent charge and give you a new debit card. The thief WON'T be able to use your old debit card and will probably just move on to vicitimize others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeyboy Posted March 29, 2010 Author Share Posted March 29, 2010 the way i look at it and why i'm asking these questions is the more i know the better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renaissancewoman101 Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 the way i look at it and why i'm asking these questions is the more i know the better. ok. I just didn't want you to worry needlessly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeyboy Posted March 29, 2010 Author Share Posted March 29, 2010 I'm not to concerned as I've taken the right steps and am keeping a close eye on it...but the more i know the better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deleted-account Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 There isn't much else for you to do or worry about at this point. The person wasn't targeting you directly, they just wanted a working card number. Now that he's been denied with that card, I'm sure he's already moved on to stealing someone else's info and forgotten about yours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fr0z3n Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 well if you still wanted to know more I can teach you most of the things I know about this stuff but what for?... Your bank already made the necessary precautions (which they alerted you upon noticing it), all you have to do is get a new card number and thats it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeyboy Posted March 30, 2010 Author Share Posted March 30, 2010 Ok. Once I call and get the charges removed (still pending) I should be all set then. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidehop Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 I guess my concern would be where this person got your information. And it's a good thing the bank caught is as if it wasn't caught and you didn't report it within 48 hrs, debit cards don't have the same protection as credit cards do. I'd pay attention to where you use your card, any place that takes your card away from you (even restaurants), gas station and online purchases that don't have secure encryption is an easy place for thieves to grab the information off your card. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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