Latest Scams.

MadamSarcastra

MadamSarcastra

MadamSarcastra, over & out.
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I thought we needed a general thread to warn each other of potentially dangerous scams & pass the info along.

Today I received this forwarded email regarding a credit card scam....

This one is pretty slick, since they provide YOU with all the information, except the one piece they want.
Click to expand...
What the Scammer wants is the 3-digit PIN number on the back of the card. Don't give it to them.
Click to expand...

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This is a heads up for everyone regarding the latest in Visa fraud. Royal Bank received this communication about the newest scam. This is happening in
> the Midwest right now and moving across the country.
>
>
> This one is pretty slick, since they provide YOU with all the information, except the one piece they want.
>
>
> Note, the callers do not ask for your card number; they already have it.
>
>
> This information is worth reading. By understanding how the VISA & MasterCard telephone Credit Card Scam works, you'll be better prepared to protect yourself.
> One of our employees was called on Wednesday from 'VISA', and I was called on Thursday 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 $497.99 from a marketing company based in Arizona ?' 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 1- 800 number listed on the back of your
> card (1-800-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?'
>
>
> Here's the IMPORTANT part on 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 last 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 last 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. We were glad we did! The REAL VISA Security Department told us it was a scam and in the last 15 minutes a new purchase of $497.99
> was charged to our card. We made a real fraud report and closed the VISA account. VISA is reissuing us a new number.
> What the Scammer wants 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 Master Card 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 Scammer 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.
>
>
> What makes this more remarkable is that on Thursday, I got a call from a '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. 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.
> I dealt with a similar situation this morning, with the caller telling me that $3,097 had been charged to my account for plane tickets to Spain , and so on through the above routine.
>
>
> It appears that this is a very active scam, and evidently quite successful....
>
>
> You might consider passing this on to all your family and friends.
 
Last edited:
Transcript:
ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

As the floodwaters in Houston recede, the risk of fraud goes up.

COREY AMUNDSON: And it starts with charity fraud, contractor fraud, emergency assistance fraud. And it evolves into program fraud as the monies come from the federal government.

SHAPIRO: U.S. Attorney Corey Amundson of Louisiana leads the National Center for Disaster Fraud. It has a call center that operates 24/7, taking complaints from anywhere in the country related to disasters. He says there have already been many complaints since Harvey. I asked him what specific reports of fraud he's hearing about.

AMUNDSON: The first his impersonations. We're getting people impersonating inspectors, both FEMA inspectors, insurance inspectors as well as the National Flood Insurance Program inspectors. That's one category. Second category are essentially fraud submissions. People claiming that others have filed claims on their property already and that their Social Security numbers are being used by somebody else. Those are all claims that we're seeing come in. We've had over a hundred calls at this point of complaints involving fraud associated with Harvey.

SHAPIRO: Does tech make this more complicated, whether it's identity fraud or people buying web domains that sound like they're disaster relief when they're actually not?

AMUNDSON: Yes. Social media is both a good thing and a bad thing in these disasters. And unfortunately the downside is that criminals also use the technology to attempt to defraud folks. I would encourage anybody that gets an email, for example, that solicits donations not to respond to the email but also not to click on any attachment or link. People should also look out for attempts to use names that sound somewhat familiar to a legitimate organization but are just slightly off.

SHAPIRO: The Crimson Cross (laughter).

AMUNDSON: Exactly, exactly. So if something feels off, it probably is. And I would encourage people to use their common sense and their gut in dealing with some of these issues because as much as we can try to identify all the different ways criminals might try to victimize people, it won't be an exhaustive list.

SHAPIRO: How do you prevent people from being taken advantage of in these cases?

AMUNDSON: Well, unfortunately the lesson is you can't prevent it all, but we can certainly take steps to help people prevent themselves from being defrauded. One of those steps is going to those charities that you know and trust and making those solicitation - those contributions directly to them. Don't provide money to people that are asking for it, certainly not in cash. And if you feel like you're being bullied or intimidated into a contribution, that's typically going to be a red flag that that's not a legitimate organization or person that's trying to help the victims. It's somebody that's trying to defraud you.

SHAPIRO: And so what do you expect the next phase of this to be?

AMUNDSON: Well, unfortunately, you know, I'd call it both a marathon and a sprint. The sprint part of it is there are disaster schemes right now, and they've already begun, and they will continue to. And we need to get a handle on those immediately in order to both deter that conduct as well as to demonstrate to people - the victims in particular - that we are out there and we are going to be supporting them.

But the second piece of it is the fact that this will likely be a 5- to 7-year odyssey and war against this fraud in its various iterations. And that's just a reality that we've seen based on experience. We've handled over 40 different disasters since the center has been founded. And that just - that's the reality of disaster fraud in this day and age.

But the good news is, with the center, we have a national coordination point where we're able to provide best practices to law enforcement. And we feel confident that we are well-positioned to do what we need to do to attack the issue.

SHAPIRO: Corey Amundson leads the National Center for Disaster Fraud. Thank you for joining us.

AMUNDSON: My pleasure. Thank you.

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Hurricane Harvey scams: Callers lie about flood insurance
 

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