Identity Theft

[12string]

Anyone ever experience it?  I bought a friend lunch at a very expensive restaurant, he said not to watch those ads on TV, don't do anything about it, don't even look at your credit card statements for a few more weeks yet, don't listen to people who tell you to keep an eye out for it.

[MickinMD ★]

2 hours ago, Road Rumer said:

Anyone ever experience it?  I bought a friend lunch at a very expensive restaurant, he said not to watch those ads on TV, don't do anything about it, don't even look at your credit card statements for a few more weeks yet, don't listen to people who tell you to keep an eye out for it.

My sister had her online page at a credit card site hacked and whoever did it changed the password and email address so she could confirm any stuff from the credit card issuer.  Fortunately, she caught it quickly, contacted the issuer and had some small charges voided.

I had my card number used "fraudulently" but I think it was an honest mistake.

I saw a $1+ charge for "HULU" - the movie rental company I never use - on a credit card statement in Sept. 2017 and, by the date of the charge, I assumed it was a charge for a beer or snack at something also called HULU in August when we spent the afternoon wandering around our Fort Lauderdale hotel's vicinity with all the green iguanas the day before our Western Caribbean Cruise left Miami.

But the next month in October, I saw a $2+ charge for "HULU" and realized it must be the movie rental HULU.  I called the credit card company and was told that hackers will often start with small charges to see if you notice.  So the card company changed my card number and deleted the two HULU charges from my account.

I phoned HULU because I didn't want an account there in my name and I was afraid they were going to not be paid, at least for the last charge, and then give me a bad credit report.  The HULU phone person I spoke to told me they did not have my name down as a customer but they did have my credit card number as having been used.  I asked how they could charge something to my card without knowing my name.  She said they never transfer any information except the card number to the card companies!  Maybe that's for tiny charge amounts.  Anyway, she took that card number off whoever's list it was on and I was clear of any problems.

I think someone probably typed in one wrong digit by mistake and ended up using my credit card number.

Also, note that I have seven credit cards to max. my cash-back ($1082.62 in 2021, $624.46 so far in 2022) and I do a reconciliation at least once a month for each one and if the online statement plus after-statement activity doesn't match the total I record in my spending spreadsheet, I look for items I forgot in the credit card site's activity list and that's usually what it is.

I would not have found those HULU charges, which potentially could have been a much bigger problem, if I didn't do that.

And it's worth taking the time to check all your charges for other reasons.

There have been things like duplicate charges that were easily fixed and Amazon not deleting the charge for the first $12.61 Masterlock for the shed I ordered, where an empty envelope was delivered.  That wasn't fixed like the Amazon driver assured me it would be.  So I had to go through Amazon's automated selection stuff where the choices don't match what happened and the information the driver supplied apparently confused the automation app - you can't just call a person like you used to.  Eventually, it went through.

 

[Prophet Zacharia]

I may have had my info stolen when my employer had a data breach of their HR data. I got a year of Life Lock for free. 
 

I’ve had my credit card cancelled a few times following unusual charges, like a gas fill in Detroit one morning when I was in Pittsburgh. But nothing huge. 

[Razors Edge ★]

17 minutes ago, MickinMD said:

I saw a $1+ charge for "HULU" - the movie rental company I never use - on a credit card statement in Sept. 2017 and, by the date of the charge, I assumed it was a charge for a beer or snack at something also called HULU in August when we spent the afternoon wandering around our Fort Lauderdale hotel's vicinity with all the green iguanas the day before our Western Caribbean Cruise left Miami.

As @maddmaxx wrote in the original thread:

On another occasion Somebody used my credit card, part of a large hack of cards from a middleman clearing house).  They did the classic 3 step, buy a song on I-tunes, buy a small product and then buy several thousand dollars of Air France airline tickets.  I'm told those latter were refundable for cash.  At any rate my credit card company got in touch with me less than 2 hours after the Air France tickets were bought and asked if it was me.  The charge to me was overturned in minutes and a new card was in my hands within days.  That's proper credit card service.

[Bikeguy]

Years ago, about one year after a vacation in Oregon, a charge for a Frontier bill was charged to my credit card.   I got a new credit card and they investigated the fraud.   

WoBG's credit card was used in Abu Dhabi.   The credit card company called and asked if that was our charge. It wasn't.   WoBG got a new credit card.

I used Norton 360 for our computer and device protection for a long time.  About 2 (or 3) years ago LifeLock and Norton merged.   I've used LifeLock for about 4 years.  In theory they will notify me if I get my identity stolen, or an account is hacked, etc...   If I do get my identiy stolen they will work to clean up the mess. 

With all of the 'data breaches' there have been over the years, I have a list somewhere... our 'data' has been lost about 15 times.   I just gave up and had all 3 of the credit bureaus freeze our credit.  No one, including us, can't access our credit history, therefore new credit can not be established in our names.  

[Bikeguy]

21 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

in the original thread:

2 threads???   

So this thread was started by a hacker and now my identity will be stolen? 

[Razors Edge ★]

3 hours ago, Road Rumer said:

Identity Theft (the parody? thread)

Hit us with a new thread name!

[jsharr ★]

You would have to be a real low life bottom dweller to steal someone's identity, esp. a nice old guy with a super cute grandkid.

[12string]

1 hour ago, Bikeguy said:

2 threads???   

So this thread was started by a hacker and now my identity will be stolen? 

Nah, wouldn't happen, your mom would make sure of that.  What's her name?  I mean her maiden name?

[Bikeguy]

4 hours ago, Road Rumer said:

Nah, wouldn't happen, your mom would make sure of that.  What's her name?  I mean her maiden name?

Yeah... right... 

Speaking of being hacked....  my email has been getting several phishing emails per day for a 2 or 3 weeks now.  

So tonight created a new email address... and OMG I have a LOT of places to update.  This will take a while.  Then I'll delete my old email address.   

[12string]

15 hours ago, Bikeguy said:

Yeah... right... 

Speaking of being hacked....  my email has been getting several phishing emails per day for a 2 or 3 weeks now.  

So tonight created a new email address... and OMG I have a LOT of places to update.  This will take a while.  Then I'll delete my old email address.   

OK, THAT wasn't me.

I can only handle one alternate identity at a time.  it's @Road Runner's turn right now

[MickinMD ★]

15 hours ago, Bikeguy said:

Yeah... right... 

Speaking of being hacked....  my email has been getting several phishing emails per day for a 2 or 3 weeks now.  

So tonight created a new email address... and OMG I have a LOT of places to update.  This will take a while.  Then I'll delete my old email address.   

Phishing seemed to go in cycles with me.  I'll usually get something that says my Amazon, Credit Union, etc. account is being frozen and I need to click on a link to fix the problem.  Of course, they never I.D. the account number, etc. and often it's for something where I don't have an account.

Fortunately, they don't go on for more than about a week, then I get nothing for months.

[Kzoo]

22 hours ago, MickinMD said:

I think someone probably typed in one wrong digit by mistake and ended up using my credit card number.

Not possible with the use of check digits.

 

[Kzoo]

21 hours ago, Razors Edge said:

On 8/29/2022 at 12:35 PM, Road Rumer said:

Identity Theft (the parody? thread)

Hit us with a new thread name!

We should just give him a 10.

 

[Some Old Guy]

21 hours ago, jsharr said:

You would have to be a real low life bottom dweller to steal someone's identity, esp. a nice old guy with a super cute grandkid.

Exactly what I was thinking.  Very sad.  

[12string]

3 minutes ago, 12strung said:

Exactly what I was thinking.  Very sad.  

Or one with a grandkid on the way.  Just sayin'.

[ChrisL]

Not stolen but we can’t e file our fed taxes as a few years back someone tried to electronically file with my SSN.  So we have to mail it in.  I haven’t noticed any unusual activity otherwise.

[Dottleshead ★]

I pay for identity protection through my employer. Much like health insurance or small scale attorney withholdings. It’s a pittance.