Great, money is coming out of Bank account unautorized.

[caryrae]

Just happen to notice today a debit from our checking account from someplace we have never heard of called sunset bill. It was posted on the bank statement as a website so I looked and it is a company that provides credit card processing for subscription websites. With a little more digging it ended up being for a porn site. So I went back a few months on our checking account and found another charge last month also. I called the bank to find out what to do but it was to late and can't talk to anyone until Monday. We have no clue how this place was able to charge our account, neither one of us lost our card we still have then. Is there any chance we will get our money back do you think? The charge was $39.58 each. Very disturbing how this happened.

[crazypoohbear]

Do you have kids?
It could be that they clicked on one of the internet pop ups for a "free" ringtone for a cell phone and then the small print says your account will be deducted XXX amount of money for who knows what.
Good luck getting this fixed.

[faline]

I don't have any advice for you but did want to say I'm sorry you're in this situation and hope everything works out okay for you!

[caryrae]

Nope no kids. I had emailed customer service from the company and received a response already saying "Our records show that you made the following secure purchase" but we never did and never would for what the charge was for. They did say we will get the money refunded in 5-7 business days but I am still canceling the bank card number and getting a new one just to be safe.

[John]

Every time you give a credit card to a waiter or waitress at a restaurant, you're exposed.

I just had my amex card cloned after a trip to the bahamas - they tried to buy a computer with it. Luckily amex caught it, stopped it and sent me a new card.

And it's not just credit cards... anytime you write a check, you're exposed. All anyone has to do is grab your checking number and routing number and your account can be cloned. Had that happen to my business. $8,000 worth of money removed that wasn't valid. The bank worked with me to get it restored.

People were using my checking number to pay directv bills, doctor bills, even collection accounts. It was crazy.

You'd be suprised how often this happens.

[medic9016]

Call you bank now and cancel your card. We had a charge at a Wendy's on my DW debit card on a day we were out of town. We got our money back. There are scanners that can be bought on Ebay for $10 to scan your card while it is still in your pocket or purse.

[mickclub1955]

I opened up a new account and my wife and I both got debit cards. The numbers on the cards were totally different. She put hers in the night stand by her bed and it still had the sticker on it. It was used for I don't know how many charges. It overdrew our account. I had to get money from my savings account to put in to keep my account with money in it. Now tell me how this card number was used. It sounded like an inside job to me.

[buzznwoodysmom]

I've had something similar happen before, except my bank caught it before I did. We had changed our phone number, but never thought to notify our bank. A $400 purchase was flagged and when my bank couldn't contact us after several attempts they canceled my debit card. It wasn't till I went to use my card, of all times while I was out of town, and the card didn't work that I even realized something was going on. I never saw the charge on my bank account because my bank didn't let it go through. When I called the bank they told me what happened and I had to be issued a new card with a new number. Its been years since this happened, and even though I was never actually out any money it was very scary. Both DH and I try to be extremely carefull with our bank accounts, but like another poster already stated, anytime you use your accounts you are exposed. I hope everything works out OK, good luck.

[caryrae]

Every time you give a credit card to a waiter or waitress at a restaurant, you're exposed.

I just had my amex card cloned after a trip to the bahamas - they tried to buy a computer with it. Luckily amex caught it, stopped it and sent me a new card.

And it's not just credit cards... anytime you write a check, you're exposed. All anyone has to do is grab your checking number and routing number and your account can be cloned. Had that happen to my business. $8,000 worth of money removed that wasn't valid. The bank worked with me to get it restored.

People were using my checking number to pay directv bills, doctor bills, even collection accounts. It was crazy.

You'd be surprised how often this happens.

Yeah I have thought about many times, how when your at a business especially restaurants where the wait staff take your card and go to the register, a lot of times out of your sight. Or buying stuff online and you put in all the card info (number, expiration date, and the code on back) or like you said how easy it would be when using a check how easy it is to just write down the account info. It's something how much we have to trust strangers with all our info.


There are scanners that can be bought on Ebay for $10 to scan your card while it is still in your pocket or purse.

I remember watching one of those inventor shows, I think it was Pitchmen, where a guy invented a card sleeve just because of this reason. They showed how easy it was for someone standing next to to scan your card info with the card even in your purse or wallet. Pretty scary if you really think about it.

[brownie]

Here's the thing with debit cards and why you shouldn't use them. For you bank accounts, if you report the fraud within 2 days of receiving the statement where the fraud appears, your liability is capped at $50. If you report it between 3 and 60 days after receiving the statement, your liability is limited to $500. After 60 days, your liability is unlimited. Your bank may waive things or reduce amounts; the limits above are what the law allows for.

Keep in mind that because debit cards are linked to your bank account, that money is gone and you have to work to get it back. The longer you wait, the less you are going to get back, and if you wait too long, you won't get any of it back. It could also mean your account gets wiped out.

While it's still a pain to deal with, your liability is limited to $50 with a credit card, and most banks waive this for you. You're not out the money if you haven't paid the bill yet, and while it's being investigated you don't have to pay it. Chance are you won't be out any money.

[Granny Jill A]

Here's the thing with debit cards and why you shouldn't use them. Keep in mind that because debit cards are linked to your bank account, that money is gone and you have to work to get it back.

I'm so paranoid that I won't let ANY business have access to my bank account, and I will never have a debit card unless I'm forced to carry one.

I know the day is coming where checks will not be allowed, but I'm steamed because retailers don't ask for any ID when you use a debit or credit card. As long as the transaction goes through, they don't care who has the card.

[caryrae]

Isn't asking for I.D. against the law or the card company's policy? I thought I remember reading or hearing about this on the news or something.

Did some looking and found it seems Merchants can ask for ID but if you refuse to show it they still have to let the transaction go through, they can not decline the transaction. Not sure if this is for every merchant.

[Magic Smiles]

but I'm steamed because retailers don't ask for any ID when you use a debit or credit card. As long as the transaction goes through, they don't care who has the card.

I have been asked many times for ID when using a credit card in the States. I would say 95% of the time in Florida and California, but not in the Northern States.

[brownie]

Isn't asking for I.D. against the law or the card company's policy? I thought I remember reading or hearing about this on the news or something.

Did some looking and found it seems Merchants can ask for ID but if you refuse to show it they still have to let the transaction go through, they can not decline the transaction. Not sure if this is for every merchant.

It's not against the law. I think it may be part of the merchant agreements.

The credit card companies use transaction-based fraud detection and don't focus as much on the identity of the person using the card. For the merchant, it is an issue since if it's a fraudulent transaction, they end up getting stuck with paying the charges.

You do have to sign the back of the card for it to be valid. Some people will just put "See ID" without signing it. This is not valid and merchants are not supposed to accept it unless it's signed. You can sign it and add "See ID" and that is valid.

Asking for ID won't cover a lot of situations where a credit or debit card is used. Think of pay at the pump, "u-scan" lanes at the grocery store, online purchases, recurring utility bills, phone transactions, etc. This is why the credit card companies focus more on fraudulent transaction detection.

I do appreciate it when a merchant asks to see my ID, though it doesn't matter if the only thing the person does is compare the name on the credit card to the name on my ID. To be effective, you also have to compare the picture on the ID to the person in front of you to see if there's a match. This does not happen most of the time when people ask to see ID.

[joonyer]

You should also report any fraudulent use of your account or card to the Police immediately. Financial Transaction Card Fraud is a felony in every state. And since card use is always computer tracked nowadays, they can be very successful in tracking down who used the card, usually right to a specific IP address, if it was online use. If it's used a a retail establishment, many of those places have video surveillance so that the card user can be visually identified.

[IloveDisney71]

Yeah I have thought about many times, how when your at a business especially restaurants where the wait staff take your card and go to the register, a lot of times out of your sight. Or buying stuff online and you put in all the card info (number, expiration date, and the code on back) or like you said how easy it would be when using a check how easy it is to just write down the account info. It's something how much we have to trust strangers with all our info.



I remember watching one of those inventor shows, I think it was Pitchmen, where a guy invented a card sleeve just because of this reason. They showed how easy it was for someone standing next to to scan your card info with the card even in your purse or wallet. Pretty scary if you really think about it.
My husband just recently had his debit card number stolen and we think he was "scanned". He just got a federal job and when they gave him his id they gave him one of those sleeves to protect his government id so nobody could steal his private info. They gave him some extra ones so we put our debit and credit cards in them. It's scary how easily your info. can be stolen. My bank told me I shouldn't use my debit card to make purchases online because it's too easy for the info to be stolen...that's scary when your bank teller tells you that! I only use my credit card to make purchases online.

[brownie]

My husband just recently had his debit card number stolen and we think he was "scanned". He just got a federal job and when they gave him his id they gave him one of those sleeves to protect his government id so nobody could steal his private info. They gave him some extra ones so we put our debit and credit cards in them. It's scary how easily your info. can be stolen. My bank told me I shouldn't use my debit card to make purchases online because it's too easy for the info to be stolen...that's scary when your bank teller tells you that! I only use my credit card to make purchases online.

Scanning only works if the card has a RFID (radio frequency identification) chip in it. Conventional cards cannot be scanned wirelessly, they need to be swiped through a magnetic stripe reader. Conventional cards can still be skimmed, though. Unless your debit card has a RFID chip in it, it wasn't compromised through scanning.

[brivers222]

I am wondering if those RFID blocker wallet and sheeths you buy for your new passport would be good to use as an everyday wallet...

[teambricker04]

Ugh. What a nightmare. At least you caught it! My DH and I would probably have not suspected something under 50 bucks coming out of our checking every month as we would figure the other purchased something.

We actually received a call from our bank when our card number and ccv on the back were used with a cell phone provider different than the one we have. It was for a really high bill and seemed suspicious so they called. Luckily the money was never taken out. Because the person who used it could be traced, we filed a police report. In the state of CO (where we lived at the time) it couldn't be prosecuted because no one actually saw the crime being committed. We figure our info was taken at a restaurant. We got new cards with new numbers.

Our 6yo son racked up some itunes costs by purchasing add ons to a game we thought was a child friendly thing. a bazillion electronic "ice cream cones" later we figured out that some apps you can actually purchase straight from... you have to watch the fine print!

It is scary how quickly and easily you can be taken advantage of!

[thrillme]

I had a similar issue but fortunately it wasn't that much. I reported it to my bank. After a brief investigation they determined it wasn't me...to prevent more from happening I closed ALL my accounts with that bank and transfered them to a new account (I stayed with the same bank but opened a new account). There was ONE account they couldn't close but I froze it.

My big recommendation is to close your account and request a new debit/credit card.

The really sad thing is...it seems they could FLAG your account and anybody attempting to use it will appear on the sellers registers as warning.

Those people should immediately be stopped by security and required to provide identification. But it never works that way.

[brownie]

I am wondering if those RFID blocker wallet and sheeths you buy for your new passport would be good to use as an everyday wallet...

It would only be a consideration if your cards actually have RFID chips in them. If they do not, you're cards aren't transmitting anything so the RFID blocker wallet wouldn't be necessary.

[Ramblingman]

Some thoughts on this topic -

It's not illegal to ask for a merchant to ask for ID and while most won't, I always make sure to thank any who do. They are looking out for us, after all.

Merchants are not required to accept a card, and if you refuse to show ID, they can (and usually will) refuse to accept your card, saying you can submit another form of tender or not make the purchase. The reason Merchants care is because they get stuck with fraudulent purchases. If you dispute a charge and the card company refunds the charge, the store is left holding the bag. They then raise prices which affects all of us, so this type of crime is definitely not a victimless crime.

Be careful when entering your pin. People will use cell phones to record it.

Technology is a wonderful thing but it can be used for evil as well. Be careful and you can usually head off most trouble. When you find unauthorized charges, immediately dispute them. There is a time limit as has been said on here.