Identity Theft is no laughing matter
Current Mood:
Whew - that's nice to get right at dinner time. The automated lady (it was a computer generated voice) spoke really fast. She spouted off a phone number and an account number. I got the last seven digits of the phone number and the first five digits of the account number which I think ended up being like 15 digits. After I wrote down five of them, I was kindof smirkingly-laughing because WHAT THE HECK! Do they WANT me to call them about this or what??
I guessed "800" for the first three digits - nope, that was wrong. Then I tried "866" and it was a debt collector. It said press "1" to make a payment and "2" to discuss alternatives or something like that. I opted for "1" thinking I'd get someone - I didn't. I hung up and dialed again. This time I pressed "2". I was put on hold for about 15 minutes and then Jamie had dinner ready so I hung up.
After dinner, I called back and again I was on hold for like 15 minutes and finally this lady came on the line. She asked me what my account number was. I told her I didn't know. She then asked for my social security number.
Me "Uh, right. I don't give that out"
Lady "How about your driver's license number?"
Me "No. Just look me up by phone number."
Lady "I can't do that. I can only look you up with your social security number."
Me "Well, I'm not giving you that."
Lady "Fine. So you don't want to take care of your urgent matter regarding a bad check?"
Me "Not until you find another way to look up my info."
Lady "Okay, thank you for calling."
And she hung up. I don't write checks often. Like two or three per year. I try to use cash or debit cards. I know I haven't written any lately, and certainly not any bad ones. I was a little shaken up because I hate things like this, but it made sense that just maybe this wasn't what it appeared to be.
I calmed down and decided that if they really wanted to contact me, they'd call back and then I could talk to someone who has my account in front of them.
Later, I was thinking about it (because that's what I do - think about stuff like this endlessly) - and I typed in the number on Google. Sure enough, the number had hits. There was a site called www.800notes.com where people record information about calls they receive. So you get a call and you aren't sure about it or if they are valid and you can look the number up here. (a fascinating site to read when you get a moment)
There were a lot of comments on this one number.
Comments like:
They called, but wouldn't tell me why.
They wanted my personal information.
They had my name wrong and wanted to clarify.
They are not legitimate and they called me. They could call anyone, and probably call a LOT of people every day. Unfortunately, some poor soul is going to get really freaked out and give out their SS# hoping to clear up the urgent matter and they are going to suffer for it. Don't let it happen to you.
If you are ever confronted with a call that you aren't sure about - ask them for a callback number so you have time to research. If your "bank" ever calls, never give out info to them (unless you are really sure it is them) - instead, call them back and talk to someone. If they really are honest about wanting to clear something up, you don't need to feel pressured and they certainly should not mind the extra layer of security.
Your first impression or comment might be "Who would give out personal info?" and the answer is "a heck of a lot of people". There wouldn't be so many ads for identity theft prevention if it wasn't a real threat. I just heard a story on the radio about a lady was in the process of buying a house when she found out she had all of these extra credit cards she didn't even know about. Why? Because SHE didn't have them - an identity thief had signed up for them using her credit info.
Comments
Sorry you got a call like this, but sounds like you handled it perfectly. Thanks for sharing - it's good to be informed.
I don't even pay attention to automated messages. If they REALLY want to scam me, they can do it in person.
There's another one going around that's really tricky. Someone posted it on a message board & I forget what it is now...let me find it...
Apologies for the length--
This was verified by snopes.com..........
Hi Everyone,
Please find below a very interesting email that you will all want to read. Royal Bank of Canada received this communication about the newest scam. This is happening in southern Alberta right now and moving. This one is pretty slick since they provide YOU with all the information, except the one piece they want. Note, the callers do not ask for your card number; they already have it.
This information is worth reading. By understanding how the VISA & MasterCard telephone Credit Card Scam works, you'll be better prepared to protect yourself. One of our employees was called on Wednesday from "VISA", and I was called on Thursday from"MasterCard".
The scam works like this:
Person calling says, "This is (name), and I'm calling from the Security and Fraud Department at VISA. My Badge number is 12460 , Your card has been fl agged for an unusual purchase pattern, and I'm calling to verify. This would be on your VISA card which was issued by (name of bank). Did you purchase an Anti-Telemarketing 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 Number. 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, "I need to 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 part of your card number, the last 3 are the Security Numbers that verify you are the possessor of the card.
These are the numbers you sometimes use to make Internet purchases to prove you have the card. The caller will ask you to read the last 3 number to him. 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 say 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 R EAL VISA Security Department told us it was a scam and in the last 15 minutes a new purchase of $497.99 was charged to our card.
We made a real fraud report and closed the VISA account. VISA is reissuing us a new number. What the scammers want is the 3-digit PIN number on the back of the card. Don't give it to them. Instead, tell them you'll call VISA or Master Card directly for verification of their conversation.
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 PIN 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 too late and/or more difficult 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 tim e 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. I dealt with a similar situation this morning, with the caller telling me that $3,097 had been charged to my account for plane tickets to Spain , and so on through the above routine.
It appears that this Is a very active scam, and evidently quite successful.
Ugh - that just makes my head spin. I think I'm getting more and more paranoid.
I donate a lot. However, I'm not completely a dumbarse. I hunted them down, found them in San Francisco and forwarded their hard address, e-mail, and THEIR telephone number to my attorney general's office.
I've received 4 letters from our atty. gen. who is compiling several complaints and since it's in another state, they can't prosecute them but there's some dealy they are sending off to CA (basically "the case").
I got a call once from my bank about some suspicious charges. Or rather, a very similar automated message to the one you mentioned. Except it provided me a pin # with the message. I tried doing research online, but couldn't find anything about the number. I decided to try calling it anyway, with the understanding that in no way whatsoever would I enter any personal information via this call, but I wanted to see if there was a real problem or not.
Turns out I did have some suspicious credit card charges, but I wasn't able to verify them via the automated system - I had to get transferred to a real person. However, just like Red said, I only had to verify the last 4 of my SSN and they were able to review the charges on my card with me and isolate the two that were not mine. I'm glad I followed up on the automated call, as I would have had to deal with $250 worth of charges at some later date when I reconciled my accounts, and it would have been harder to dispute had it been 1-2 months down the line, rather than just 1 week since the charges.
I was aware enough of the problems with identity theft to be careful with my automated message, but I'm sure others out there aren't so careful. I need to review this with my wife and family and make sure they remember not to give out personal info when people call you, and when in doubt, always call back on the institution's main # or research the number you've been given, first.
I agree, CP. It's predatory, without a doubt.
Thanks for posting this info, DeWitte.
CP - Thanks for posting in such a provocative way.
***Ya know I just had to click it***
Glad I did.
I've had my identity stolen, in 2000 an illegal immigrant in Miami used my social for employment... I've been fighting this for years but my employment record via the social security office states that an alias of my name is Hector Saco and that I have previously lived and worked in Miami Dade County.
""I hunted them down, found them in San Francisco and forwarded their hard address, e-mail, and THEIR telephone number to my attorney general's office.""
nice! like a vigilante or the a-team.
That same automated lady called me, too. I deleted her as I have no debt other than my mortgage and a car payment. You can get a free credit report once a year from each of three agencies. Time it right so you can check three times a year. So far, nothing has ever turned up suspect for me.
A couple of months ago I had an email from my bank (Bank of America) regarding a suspicious charge and to call a special number. I called and sure enough, someone bought a $1000 plane ticket on British Airways at 2:00 a.m. that day. They closed the account immediately, issued me a new card and sent me paperwork to fill out. It was fantastic.
What I thought strange is 1. A friend of mine had this happen to her - someone bought an Air Canada ticket from Port of Spain to Toronto, which makes me wonder if a special scam is going around and 2. How come it takes one or two days for my airplane ticket purchases to clear and my bank person said this already went through, less than 12 hours of the purchase? That must have triggered the alert system.
I also get emails about "problems with your account" with places I've never done business with (Wells Fargo, eBay, Paypal, etc). I get BoA scammy emails, too. Instead of going through email links to where you know your account is, always go direct to the website and enter in your info as per normal. That way you are tricked into entering your log on info.
Also, with online banking, you can go in and check balances and transactions as often as you want. I would have picked up on the fake charge because I look in on what kind of damage I'm doing to my budget.
then they said thanks and hung up. Freaks me out when people do this stuff. Phone fraud, email fraud... it's frustrating. You can't verify anything anymore.
my mom got one of those calls. i caught her reciting her name and addreess and checking account over and over into the receiver for them (so they'd have her voice recorded so they could make phone transactions in the future) and i promptly put a stop to the conversation and immediately told her to close her checking account.
the bank was very supportive.