Credit Card Fraud (1 Viewer)

[zed2283]

So I logged onto my online credit card account on Monday (11/3) and found three unauthorized charges totaling ~$1,350. I was a little surprised because I had just looked at it last week (on 10/25) and the charges were not there. The purchases were made on 10/14, 10/17, and 10/21. I guess it takes more than a week to show up online? I called my cc company and they gathered my info, reversed the charges, and closed the account. They said there were no other charges pending.

The charges looked to be airline purchases. Two on Spirit (10/14 and 10/21) and one on Avianca (10/17). This appeared to me to obviously be someone traveling to and/or from Colombia. Spirit services quite a few destinations in South America, with their hub being in Ft. Lauderdale (FLL) and Avianca is the main airline in Colombia. I travel there quite a bit, so my next thought was that someone must have lifted my cc info when I was down there the last time (mid-September). Could have been someone at the hotel, restaurant, etc.

The cc company told me they would investigate, etc. but I really don't know to what extent they pursue these things. I figured it must be very easy to track this person down to a point. Airline tickets would have to be in their name, and if they did travel internationally they would had to have used a passport (even if they had given a phony address or whatnot). So I called both Spirit and Avianca and logged complaints and asked for some info. They told me they would also investigate but couldn't tell me more until they verified things, etc.

Anyone know to what extent these things are investigated and/or prosecuted?

 

[fantasycurse42]

Meh, it is out of your hands at this point... You aren't responsible so I would just move on.

One piece of advice for right now though; sign up for a credit monitoring program like freescore, creditreport, scoresense, etc... This would just be cautionary in case someone has more info than just a CC number. This will alert you if someone tries to open a line of credit under your name.

 

[Dan Lambskin]

Leads, yeah sure. I'll uh, just check with the boys down at the Crime Lab. They uh, got uh, four more detectives working on the case. They've got us working in shifts.

 

[The Big Guy]

You did your part. Story is over. The credit card company and the airline will do nothing and the thief wins. Yay for the process.

 

[zed2283]

Meh, it is out of your hands at this point... You aren't responsible so I would just move on.

One piece of advice for right now though; sign up for a credit monitoring program like freescore, creditreport, scoresense, etc... This would just be cautionary in case someone has more info than just a CC number. This will alert you if someone tries to open a line of credit under your name.

Yeah, thanks. I do have something like that, I think it's through Experian.

 

[NutterButter]

You sure you weren't drugged with scopolamine. Of course you wouldn't remember if you were. They use that stuff to get you to go to the atm with them and clear out your bank account. I guess buying airline tickets would be another option. Stuff is crazy.

 

[Juxtatarot]

When a credit card company "investigates" they really just mean they will decide to 1) chargeback the transaction to the merchant, 2) eat it, or 3) find a reason you should pay.

 

[zed2283]

Leads, yeah sure. I'll uh, just check with the boys down at the Crime Lab. They uh, got uh, four more detectives working on the case. They've got us working in shifts.

You did your part. Story is over. The credit card company and the airline will do nothing and the thief wins. Yay for the process.

Yeah, that's kind of what I figured. But it seems like it should be fairly easy for someone in law enforcement to track them down, given the nature of the purchase. It's not like buying something anonymously at a store and walking out.

 

[Bucky86]

Leads, yeah sure. I'll uh, just check with the boys down at the Crime Lab. They uh, got uh, four more detectives working on the case. They've got us working in shifts.

You did your part. Story is over. The credit card company and the airline will do nothing and the thief wins. Yay for the process.

Yeah, that's kind of what I figured. But it seems like it should be fairly easy for someone in law enforcement to track them down, given the nature of the purchase. It's not like buying something anonymously at a store and walking out.

I've heard that these people pose as "travel agents" and book plane tickets using cash for "customers."

 

[avoiding injuries]

Are you sure it was limited to this one credit card? I went through identity theft a few years ago. It might be worth calling the police and getting a case number. That's all I had to provide to creditors in order for them to close everything out.

 

[zed2283]

Are you sure it was limited to this one credit card? I went through identity theft a few years ago. It might be worth calling the police and getting a case number. That's all I had to provide to creditors in order for them to close everything out.

That's a good point, thanks. I just went and checked my other accounts and nothing seemed amiss.

 

[Juxtatarot]

When fraudulent transactions happen on an existing credit or debit card, it's very rare for that to turn into full blown identity theft. There is so much stolen data out there, criminals become specialists in a particular type of fraud.

 

[zed2283]

Just got off the phone with Spirit and now I'm confused. I had assumed that all the plane tickets purchased were most likely for same-day travel, but that's not what happened. The tickets purchased on 10/14 and 10/22 are actually two one-way tickets, both under the same name and leaving from FLL on the same day, one to DEN and one to DET. The flights are scheduled for 11/18.

I guess that makes me think it's just some sort of scam as opposed to unauthorized purchases. Any ideas?

 

[Chemical X]

here's a tip....Go to Home Depot's web site and get The free offer of 1 year of credit monitoring.

 

[NutterButter]

Just got off the phone with Spirit and now I'm confused. I had assumed that all the plane tickets purchased were most likely for same-day travel, but that's not what happened. The tickets purchased on 10/14 and 10/22 are actually two one-way tickets, both under the same name and leaving from FLL on the same day, one to DEN and one to DET. The flights are scheduled for 11/18.

I guess that makes me think it's just some sort of scam as opposed to unauthorized purchases. Any ideas?

Call Homeland Security.

 

[SFBayDuck]

I went through CC fraud a couple of years ago - had my number lifted while traveling in LA. The thief made multiple calls from what was ghosted to be my home number, (even though that number had caller ID blocking) requesting a new PIN number - multiple because they kept failing the identity confirmation questions. But on the 9th or 10th try they finally got an answer right and were able to set a new PIN - good job Chase! They then created a new CC with my number and made multiple $300 ATM withdrawals from 7-11s around LA, all after midnight on the same night.

Initially Chase reversed the charges, but a few months later I received a call indicating they were putting them back on my account since the phone calls came from my "home number". It took several more months and finally getting someone on the phone who would look at the obvious fraud signs - multiple failed calls to request a PIN, my home number had caller id blocking, multiple small ATM withdrawals after midnight in a place I don't live - to finally get them reversed again.

GL, hopefully your experience with your cc company is better than mine was.

 

[Chemical X]

Just got off the phone with Spirit and now I'm confused. I had assumed that all the plane tickets purchased were most likely for same-day travel, but that's not what happened. The tickets purchased on 10/14 and 10/22 are actually two one-way tickets, both under the same name and leaving from FLL on the same day, one to DEN and one to DET. The flights are scheduled for 11/18.

I guess that makes me think it's just some sort of scam as opposed to unauthorized purchases. Any ideas?

refundable tickets?