Tuesday, July 12, 2005

New Credit Card Scam! Don't be a victim!

A new credit card scam is on the loose..... Be aware!
Mr. "X" was called on Wednesday from "VISA" and Mrs. "X" I was called on Thursday from Master Cardd". The scam works like this:

Person calling says, "this is___, and I'm calling from the Security and Fraud Department at VISA. My Badge number is 12460. Your card has been flagged for an unusual purchase pattern, and I'm calling to verify. This would be on your VISA card, which was issued by (bank). Did you purchase an AntiTelemarketingg Device for $497.99 from a marketing company based in Arizona?" When you say "No", the caller continues with, "Then we will be issuing a credit to your account. This is a company we have been watching and the charges range from $297 to $497, just under the $500 purchase pattern that flags most cards. Before your next statement, the credit will be sent to (gives you your address), is that correct?" You say "yes". The caller continues, "I will be starting a Fraud investigation. If you have any questions, you should call the 1-800 number listed on the back of your card (1-800-VISA) and ask for Security You will need to refer to this Control#". The caller then gives you a 6-digit number. "Do you need me to read it again?" Here's the IMPORTANT part on how the scam works. The caller then says, he needs "..Too verify you are in possession of your card". He'll ask you to "turn your card over and look for some numbers. There are 7 numbers; the first 4 are your card number, the next 3 are the 'Security Numbers' that verify you are in possession of the card. These are the numbers you use to make Internet purchases to prove you have the card. Read me the 3 numbers". After you tell the caller the 3 numbers, he'll say ," That is correct. I just needed to verify that the card has not been lost or stolen, and that you still have your card. Do you have any other questions?" After you say No, the caller then thanks you and states, "Don't hesitate to call back if you do", and hangs up. You actually said very little, and they never ask for or tell you the card number. But after we were called on Wednesday, we called back within 20 minutes to ask a question. Are we glad we did! The REAL VISA Security Department told us it was a scam and in the last 15 minutes a new purchase of $497.99 was charged on our card. Long story short, we made a real fraud report and closed the VISA card, and they are reissuing us a new number. What thethe scammerss want is the 3-digit number on the back of the card. Don't give it to them! Instead, tell them you'll call VISA or Master card direct.The real VISA told us that they will never ask for anything on the card as they already know the information since they issued the card! If you give the scammers your 3 Digit Number, you think you're receiving a credit. However, by the time you get your statement, you'll see charges for purchases you didn't make, and by then it's almost to late and/or hard to actually file a fraud report. What makes this more remarkable is that on Thursday, I got a call from a "Jason Richardson of MasterCard" with a word-for-word repeat of the VISA scam. This time I didn't let him finish. I hung up! We filed a police report, as instructed by VISA. The police said they are taking several of these reports daily. They also urged us to tell everybody we know that this scam is happening. Please pass this on to all your friends. By informing each other, we protect each other.

2 comments:

A yid said...

Wow, I imagine that unsophisticated people could really be fooled by this, such as the elderly and other groups. Thanks for posting this.

AS said...

My pleasure.