VISA scam

[Hilary]

A friend has just alerted me to this VISA / Mastercard scam currently doing the rounds. As far as I know, this is a genuine 'scam alert', so I'm passing it on.

This is a clever scam .. watch out for it !!

Visa and MasterCard scam

My husband was called on Wednesday from "VISA" and I was called in Thursday rom "MasterCard".

It worked like this: Person calling says, "This is Carl atterson (any name) 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 Did you purchase an Anti-Telemarketing Device/ Any expensive item for £ 497.99 from a marketing company based in Anywhere?"

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 0800 number listed on your card 1-800-VISA and ask for Security. You will need to refer to this Control #". Then gives you a 6 digit number. "Do you need me to read it again?"

Caller then says he "needs to verify you are in possession of your card. Turn the card over. There are 7 numbers; first 4 are 1234 whatever) 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."

Then he says "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? Don't hesitate to call back if you do."

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 REAL VISA security dept.HE told us it was a scam and in the last 15 minutes a new purchase of £497.99 WAS put on our card.
Long story made short . we made a real fraud report and closed the VISA card and they are reissuing as a new number.

What the scam wants is the 3 digit number and that once the charge goes through, they keep Charging every few days. By the time you get your statement, you think the credit is coming, and then it's harder to actually file a fraud report.

REMEMBER: THE REAL VISA REINFORCED THAT THEY WILL NEVER ASK FOR ANYTHING ON THE CARD(THEY ALREADY KNOW EVERYTHING ABOUT US)!!!!.

What makes this more remarkable is that on Thursday, I got a call from "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), and they said they are taking several of these reports daily and to tell friends, relatives and coworkers. PASS IT ON!

 

[Beth__WDW23/6/02]

Oh my.
Good job they rang back, and found the truth out.
My partner had a call simular, They asked for his name, and i couldnt understand what the man was saying, in the end he said he was from His credit card company, when i said i didnt understand his accent, he shouted something verbal and put the phone down, His number was Withheld.
That made me feel quite worried so we checked his credit card via phone and the account was fine. etc.

Seems like they are trying to scam people, its annoying you cant have anything these days.

Thanx for the warning.

 

[UKDEB]

It seems that whatever the credit card companies do, the fraudsters will find a way around it. The golden rule is <b>THE PERSON <i>MAKING</i> THE CALL GIVES THE PASSWORD/SECURITY/OTHER INFORMATION IF ASKED FOR IT</b>. You should <i>never</i> give any information to anyone who phones you and asks you for it unless you are certain with whom you are speaking. If everyone understood this, these types of fraud wouldn't happen. What really annoys me (I keep meaning to write to my MP about it), is that bonefide companies have taken to phoning customers and asking for security information (such as date of birth and Mother's maiden name) before they will continue the call. I often have telephone conversations along these lines:

<i>Hello</i>

Hello, can I speak with Debbie Churchill, please.

<i>Speaking</i>

This is Tyler from Dodgy Finances Direct. Before I can continue, I need to ask you a few security questions.

<i>You phoned me</i>

Silence

<i>Silence</i>

Umm...before I can give you the information, I need you to give me your Mother's maiden name and date of birth

<i>You phoned me. I don't know who you are - you could be anyone</i>

I'm Tyler from Dodgy Finances Direct.

<i>So you say, but how can I verify that? You could be a fraudster trying to trick me into divulging information.</i>

[IRATE] Well, if you're not willing to give me the details, I can't give you the information.

<i>[INCREDULOUS] You phoned me! I haven't asked you for any information. If you have information you want to give me, feel free. Otherwise we're wasting one another's time and we may as well end the call.</i>

I don't consider myself to be a difficult person, but this one has the ability to get me going every time!