Holy cow, I've been compromised

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I took a call this morning from my credit card company to say there was an 'unusual' transaction going through, £812 on an internet gambling site, was it genuine? After picking myself up off the floor they said that another transaction was trying to go through while they were on the phone to me. Fortunately it was stopped and I'm in the clear as regards the £812.

But how could it happen? I've got a firewall, regularly update virus IDE's, don't give out my number over the phone, destroy credit card receipts etc So what more can I do in the future, other than using a barter system?

― Billy Dods (Billy Dods), Thursday, 9 October 2003 10:13 (twenty-one years ago)

Jesus, scary scary stuff.

― Nick Southall (Nick Southall), Thursday, 9 October 2003 10:15 (twenty-one years ago)

There's been a lot of talk about this round my office. Credit card is huge, MUCH huger than the banks lead you to believe. Just because the stolen number was used on the internet doesn't mean that it was stolen on the internet. Half the time, it is actually corruption within the banks or the credit card companies themselves. At other times, it's people using unauthorised readers to copy the number when they put through a credit card transaction - there was a scandal a little while back suggesting that this often happened to diners paying with credit cards at certain Brick Land eateries!

The only thing I can suggest is, be on your guard. Think before you use your credit card in any circumstances, even IRL transactions. And check your statement carefully every month.

― kate (kate), Thursday, 9 October 2003 10:20 (twenty-one years ago)

My flatmate once got a call from a credit card company to ask about why he was exceeding the limit on a card he never received. They'd sent the company card to the flat, and some fucker had intercepted both the card and the PIN (it wasn't a very secure lobby/postbox) and taken out 200 quid 15 days in a row. So they put him (my flatmate) in touch with the fraud department, and it all got sorted out. Though classically the collection agency were the last people to hear that it was sorted, leading to some nasty scenes.

― Andrew Farrell (afarrell), Thursday, 9 October 2003 10:34 (twenty-one years ago)

my mum's credit card got screwed in a similar fashion 2 yrs ago - someone obtained her details and maxed it out on some home shopping channel. she never had a big balance, but was a good regular payer, so "maxed" was a lot of money. the company sorted it out. The story is that cc companies could fairly easily produce an unhax0rable cc system, but stumping up for fraud insurance is vastly cheaper for them. i have no idea if this is true or not. my cc gives me ph34r b/c of this anyway.

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Thursday, 9 October 2003 10:40 (twenty-one years ago)

Also watch where you chuck out your bills that you used your card to pay for.

― Mr Noodles (Mr Noodles), Thursday, 9 October 2003 11:40 (twenty-one years ago)

This happened to my dad. It turned out that someone from had gotten his social security number and applied for a bunch of credit cards and run up enormous charges. In the U.S. you can put a fraud alert on your credit, which is supposed to help and cuts down on the approved-credit junk mail too.

― JuliaA (j_bdules), Thursday, 9 October 2003 15:10 (twenty-one years ago)

Surely if someone has stolen your card details and uses them to buy stuff over the internet, then that person can be traced? I mean, from the delivery address they give for their purchases, or the IP address or something?

This is scary stuff. I'm still not really comfortable with internet banking and buying things online, though maybe I'm being too paranoid.

― C J (C J), Thursday, 9 October 2003 20:39 (twenty-one years ago)

They can be traced, (fairly easily I assume) but it's not guaranteed that the police will do anything about it. My dad looked into things and found out who had stolen his identity for credit. He called the police and told them--he had the guy's name, address, and phone number, and all sorts of proof. The police told him that they didn't have time for that sort of thing, that the guy was out of their area anyway, and bullshit like that. The credit card company didn't care either--they had their fraud insurance.

I hope that that was a unique instance of that sort of indifference.

― JuliaA (j_bdules), Thursday, 9 October 2003 21:10 (twenty-one years ago)

yeah stuff like this is a really good argument for a personal paper shredder (or for ripping up your bills before you toss them, or making sure they go in an incinerator)

― maura (maura), Thursday, 9 October 2003 22:09 (twenty-one years ago)

Scary stuff, Billy. However, at least, your card company cared enough to let you know. If they know you didn't authorise it, then tis their job to reinburse you.

With hacking the way it is, anyone could get past a firewall now, if they know how. Check that your software is up to date.

― Nichole Graham (Nichole Graham), Thursday, 9 October 2003 22:20 (twenty-one years ago)

Is your internet bill billed straight to your credit card? I had a similar problem with some site last month, but I pay mine through the phone bill and 33 quid from a site I'd supposedly visited turned up on there (no one else has access to this computer, I've asked the phone company to put a block on any premium rate calls being made on this line in case it happens again. Don't look at me like that, I didn't go looking for porn or visit anything out of the ordinary that month). If I'd payed with a credit card, it would have gone to that, and I have all the firewalls I can shove on here.

― oscillatingocelot, Friday, 10 October 2003 03:56 (twenty-one years ago)

There are so many places and so many ways for your credit card info to be taken, you can generally assume it already has been taken. (Which isn't to say you shouldn't try to protect yourself.)

There was a restaurant here where one of the employees was taking credit card numbers and using them to make relatively small purchases. It took quite a while for the common thread to be figured out by the police.

― Chris P (Chris P), Friday, 10 October 2003 04:11 (twenty-one years ago)

i have no credit cards. this is a good way to go.

― A Girl Named Sam (thatgirl), Friday, 10 October 2003 04:36 (twenty-one years ago)

Do you have a debit card?

― Chris P (Chris P), Friday, 10 October 2003 04:44 (twenty-one years ago)

someone used my card
to buy $800
worth of CDs once

I was pissed because
that dude got all those CDs--
I only bought two

― Haikunym (Haikunym), Friday, 10 October 2003 04:45 (twenty-one years ago)

Do you have a debit card?

nope.

― A Girl Named Sam (thatgirl), Friday, 10 October 2003 04:51 (twenty-one years ago)

unfortunately Julia, the indifference isn't unique. my uncle had a guy in his apartment complex who was taking his and (other people's) cc#'s from the outgoing mail bin and ordering stuff to the complex and intercepting the merchandise. they figured out who it was and he just kept doing it. the credit card companies have insurance to cover the costs and the police don't give a shit. hey, why not just start doing it yourself, you are pretty much guaranteed to get away with it. ;(

― lolita corpus (lolitacorpus), Friday, 10 October 2003 06:44 (twenty-one years ago)

i worked with a guy who had his debit card stolen by the 'checkout chick' at the supermarket. she watched him put his pin in, retained his card and he diditn notice, then she went to the atm and withdrew hundreds of dollars. fortunately, she was on in-store-camera and was caught out in the end.
nothing is safe with cards.
i have had my credit card stolen then my small business broken into to obtain the replacement card plus new pin sent out, and used to withdraw thousands, only discovered by me when i got the credit card statement.( in the meantime wondering where the hell was my replacement card ).
to my knowledge, no one was ever caught or charged, but i didnt get lumbered with the debt, luckily.
i now have no credit cards, and am very very wary when using my debit card in the store ie: be aware if someone is peeping over your shoulder.

― donna (donna), Friday, 10 October 2003 06:52 (twenty-one years ago)

This is indeed scary stuff!
I'm glad you werent liable!

― Pinkpanther (Pinkpanther), Friday, 10 October 2003 06:58 (twenty-one years ago)

I suppose I was quite fortunate in that it was one big purchase. If whoever used it was smart, they would have got lot's of little purchases which wouldn't have alerted anyone for a few weeks.

I'm hoping they'll let me know who it was if they catch them so I can see if a trojan has nicked my details or if it's just some dumb kid working at a petrol station or restaurant with a gambling problem.

I'm pretty cautious anyway so it's been a bit of a shock. I guess I'll just have to be even more cautious in future.

― Billy Dods (Billy Dods), Friday, 10 October 2003 08:05 (twenty-one years ago)

I had a $100 charge to my debit card from Starbucks, exactly $100. I had to go to Starbucks first and try and get them to revoke the charge, they said I had to go talk to my bank. So the bank gave me a form to fill out to contest the charge, I had to get a new debit card, and Starbucks gave me the money back ithout contesting it (like $100 means anything to them). So it was pretty easy for me. But I still don't know what happened, if an employee had used my number to get cash or something or if was just an accident.

― NA (Nick A.), Friday, 10 October 2003 16:00 (twenty-one years ago)

nine years pass...

http://i.imgur.com/Zl5Tw.png

― Roberto Spiralli, Thursday, 15 November 2012 19:09 (twelve years ago)

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