New credit card scam:

From an e-mail I got:

This one is pretty slick since they provide Y O U with all the information, except the one piece they want.

This one is pretty slick since they provide Y O U with all the information, except the one piece they want. Note, the callers do not ask for your card number; they already have it.

You get a cold call from "VISA", or 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 flagged 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 .99 from a Marketing company based in London?"

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 to , just under the 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 the back of your card (0800-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?"

IMPORTANT here's 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 next 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 3 numbers 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 REAL VISA Security Department told us it was a scam and in the last 15 minutes a new purchase of .99 was charged to our card.

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 MasterCard 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.

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.

... J-D.

andrewc52002 said:

When they ask for 3-digit PIN to verify it, I would ask them to tell me what they are and I will confirm or not.
Is it a good idea ?

Click to expand...

That would be an idea... the other one could be to give a wrong one first, if they are scammers, and since their ploy is that this is the ONE information they don't have and therefor are after, their answer will be to confirm it, assuming to are telling the truth... which would indicate to you that you are indeed talking to a scammer.
Still, I think the best suggestion in ALL these and similar cases is to thank for the call and tell them YOU will call back to the customer service number on the back of your card and hang up.

The basic rule is and remains, don't EVER give ANY personal or financial information out to people (or automated systems) who approach you in any way asking for it.

Btw: here is an interesting site which may help uncover or locate phone numbers of suspicious people or confirmed scammers: whocalled.us

... J-D.

Uzin said:

I wonder why they bother about that 3 digit number. If they have your address, card number (possibly expiry date) they can do a lot of scamming already. I mean, where do they get those information anyway.... ?

You will be glad they called and you managed to uncover the scam and cancel your card, I won't be happy knowing (or not knowing !) someone has my address AND credit card number and so on...!?

Click to expand...

Your address and credit card number can be found (together) in your trash (thrown away statements), just to give you an example. Also about by now almost 15 years of credit card payment history, has created a considerable trail of matching information disseminated all over the "net".
That is the reason most non-physical (telephone or online) transactions NOW require the mention of the "Security Code" on the back of the card. This code does not show in any statements or records.
To suck off money from cards one does not physically hold (just the data) one would also now need that code.
This will only HELP prevent a good number of abuses and frauds and only for a limited time. You now also start to see internet merchants requiring info such as the client's phone number listed with the banking or credit institution. New cross references will appear faster and faster in order to try to make the cyber market place a safe one for the majority of transactions.

Btw. I agree with CC on people needing to be responsible. Only that, as Frog correctly pointed out, I also think CC overlooked the fact, that some people can be intimidated quite easily as these scammers are especially good at creating a sense of urgency and need of immediate action. Not only because of age or lack of adulthood but especially people who live abroad (which may be the case for some on this Forum) also can be caught by surprise and that sense of urgency and lack of control because of the distance between their physical location and the remote location of their accounts (when using cards and accounts form "back home"). How would most here react to the risk of having their international credit card frozen for failing to to take immediate action, when that's the one card with the big credit and oh so important in case of a real and immediate urgency while living or traveling in a very foreign country?
Any which way, I don't see the sense of repeatedly posting about the validity of posting on this Forum... but then, I don't have to agree with just everybody.

... J-D.