2011 - Year of the scam?

[DarkHumour]

This morning I checked my balance it was $90 in the negative.  I looked at pending transactions. WTF? Someone billed travel to my card basically draining the account.  I went to the nearest branch when it opened and had them flag the transaction.  The bank rep also called the merchant and I talked to their customer support line to also alert that this was fraud.  He mentioned the name of the alleged perpetrator or whoever this travel was for. I had no idea who they were.  I suspect they jotted down my card numbers from a recent transaction somewhere. GRRR.  So that card was cancelled.  I had not already done so from the last criminal activity.

I had to warn off my landlady / b-n-b manager not to cash the rent checks yet. I hate doing that because I feel like a deadbeat but they would have bounced until this money is refunded back into my account.  I'm getting a new card and I think I may get a few gift cards to load up on occasion for daily purchases such as fast food (if they allow that and there are no per use fees). So the scum sucking bastards would only take me for $50 or less.  I probably can't get a credit card yet.

Funny. I had another one of those 'universe' splitting moments just before I paid off the last account that accrues interest yesterday. I thought I may need that money. 'Nah! It's already transferred. Go ahead and pay off this debt.'

Happy holidays

DarkHumour

Edit: homophone aphasia corrected - may instead of made. And yeah. If had not transferred money to pay debt off, my main account would not have gone negative after the crook ripped me off.

[Carrie Cobol]

Bummer, DH.  Life always has a way to kick people when they're down, doesn't it?  Anything we can do to help?  Send you a few gift cards for grocery stores?

[TRexx]

That's why I only use banks that let me download transactions directly into Quicken which I do every day so I know about bogus transactions with 24 hours.  I've had a couple but because I caught and reported them early, I never suffered a real loss, other than the hassle of changing credit card account numbers.

[DarkHumour]

I'm still working and have my health. Although since going off adhd meds and coping with stress by eating, the weight I lost is back.

I don't know I think the one advantage to being depressed is that there is a kind of numbness or indifference I retreat to after getting angry and taking action.  Trying not to let the 'waiting until it is fixed by the merchant and bank' drive me nuts.  Some gifts should be arriving in the mail soon which include my favorite cookies.  Also getting a new shiny black shark backpack (Morn Industries) to replace the one that is wearing out.

I hope the money is returned by the weekend so I get a sawzall and finally finish my exhaust pipe project.  Heh. If I was in a horror movie frame of mind I'd be waiting near the airport for the thief. BZZZZZZ.  The luggage and the crook arrive at their destination together... or would that be ALL APART ? MUAH HA HA HA HA !

I have been throwing myself into mindless busywork.  Is there ever a work season that doesn't include inventory ?  Also feel like I am playing some kind of insane video game when I'm logging into multiple machines (25-50) at once and run manual scripts before the screen saver kicks in.

DarkHumour.

Edit: clarity, punctuation.

[The Gorn]

I believe that outright scams have become an almost-legitimate business model. They are pervasive.

About a year ago my wife was contacted by some magazine subscription bureau that tried to claim that she agreed verbally on the phone to a $400 2 year subscription to "Soap Opera Digest" and they threatened collection action. I talked to the guy on the phone and he sounded exactly like a pimp about to beat down his whore. I actually got a cop out here who talked to the person on the phone and the guy backed down on his claim that he had recording of my wife agreeing to the subscription. I could see this ruse taking an elderly person.

I keep getting extremely scammy phone calls on my business line. One is a poorly modulated, booming recording that sounds like it was recorded in a factory with a guy with a loud grating voice saying "THIS IS MR KING AND WE HAVE THIS NUMBER IN CONNECTION WITH A CONTRACT MATTER! YOU NEED TO CALL 1-888-xxxxxxxx RIGHT NOW TO CLEAR YOUR CREDIT." "Mr King", loud harsh call --- I suppose it is supposed to be intimidating.

Last night some piece of shit Indian telemarketing spam center guy identifying himself as "CVS Caremark" who was trying to tell me to enroll in a mail order pharmacy service. I think that call was SPAM but my wife has been dinged mercilessly by CVS Caremark from her employer (legitimately) to move all of our subscriptions to their shitty mail order pharmacy.

It feels at times like there is a herd of carnivorous mice scurrying around at your feet ready to eat you alive if you don't keep stepping on them and crushing them.

This morning I checked my balance it was $90 in the negative.  I looked at pending transactions. WTF? Someone billed travel to my card basically draining the account. 

So you were attacked through your credit card logo'd debit card?

I won't use the f***ing things. I will only use ATM cards with a PIN. Debit cards are exclusively provided for the benefit of the bank to be able to saddle the consumer with most fraud risk. Debit cards are as good as carrying around thousands of dollars cash in your pocket.

[TRexx]

So you were attacked through your credit card logo'd debit card?

I won't use the f***ing things. I will only use ATM cards with a PIN. Debit cards are exclusively provided for the benefit of the bank to be able to saddle the consumer with most fraud risk. Debit cards are as good as carrying around thousands of dollars cash in your pocket.

I understand that some people with poor credit history have no choice but to use a debit card, but I know lots of people, with excellent credit,  who use them exclusively.  I have never understood why. The common explanation is that they don't want to pay the credit card interest.   But if you pay the balance in full each month, there is no interest, and you rack up reward points.
 
BTW I've heard that some employers, specifically Wal~Mart, no longer pay their employees via check. Instead they issue each employee a debit card and deposit their wages into it. Some states are doing the same thing with welfare and unemployment payments.

[choppedwood]

I have a credit card that was sold to another company a few years ago and I stopped using it.  I never made a single transaction under the new company and they issued me a new card and number when the switch was made.  In the month that the card expired the company sends me a letter saying they were going to cancel the card, and, right then, literally to the day, I get hit with 2 transactions in China totaling $600.  I call the company, because isn't it obvious, and they roll back the transactions.  Over the next few months both transactions are credited, both times I have to call the company, and both times they offer me a check for the credit balance.

I have on idea how that card got used.  It, literally, never made it into circulation, ever, from me.

[benali72]

I'm with TRexx. I see no reason to use a debit card if you're able to use a credit card instead. Personal credit cards (but not business credit cards) have pretty reasonable consumer protections, while debit cards have almost none. Never use a debit card unless you have to.

You're safer carrying a wad of cash around than a debit card. At least with the cash your loss is limited to what you carry.

>>>>> I believe that outright scams have become an almost-legitimate business model. They are pervasive.

I agree with the Gorn. It almost seems like we are regressing back to 1900, before the FDA, food inspections, and many other consumer protections we take for granted these days. With the advent of the digital era, a whole new area of consumer abuse has opened up. Yet very fundamental regulation and consumer protection is absent.

Instead, while digitalization has come upon us, much of our society has re-adopted philosophies discredited since the 1930s, like social darwinism and semi-monopolistic corporatism.  No need for any protections or regulation! Let the market sort it out! 

Fine if you have a free market.  We don't in areas like finance (where there are only 3 credit agencies and 1 rating agency) or online access (where most people have no more than 2 options for their ISP) or healthcare (where the majority of states do not have competitive health insurance options).

 It's 1900 all over again, but this time we are digital peons.
 

[Carrie Cobol]

I have on idea how that card got used.  It, literally, never made it into circulation, ever, from me.

Not hard to figure it out:  their database got hacked.  Actually so many companies get hacked these days that it's almost not news anymore and I'm surprised a large majority of people aren't ruined financially from ID theft.  There are billions of stolen card records out there just waiting to be harvested.  Very scary thought!

[DarkHumour]

I thought about sandboxing my money into small amounts on gift cards for fast food or other purchases.  Of course those can be stolen before you even buy them. The perps just wait for you to load money onto them.  I'd rather it be a $20 inconvenience than $900 though. 

Ate ramen for dinner. Woo.  I have cereal, pasta, bread, milk, and basics to last a few days so it isn't like I'm starving.

My balance is still negative and of course the bank dinged me for that.  Maybe the transaction can finally be flagged at midnight though since it *has* posted. Meanwhile I called the travel portal and there is nothing new to report.  Their fraud department hasn't made an update. I know the perp's name and their booking was for a 24th.  December ? January ? I don't know.

I wish that television would weave subliminal lessons into their shows, e.g. a perp pull some sh*t like this and he(or she) gets their ass kicked anonymously by the victim or advocates.  I wonder what IP address this criminal used.  Isn't a 'nuke from orbit' kiddy revenge tool out there ?

Today I was just talking to a coworker about that paycheck debit card that some employees get instead of paper one.  It is under yet another "screw the poor" scheme where every single transaction incurs a fee.  Maybe only a few of them are like this.. 

There is a certain day labor company that was notorious for nickle and diming their people for various equipment costs to below minimum wage. Yeah. I worked for them in Illinois a few times...but since this is a 'blue' state their evil was tempered I think.

Meh.  So tired. 

DarkHumour

Edit: Spelling.

[TRexx]

Today I was just talking to a coworker about that paycheck debit card that some employees get instead of paper one.  It is under yet another "screw the poor" scheme where every single transaction incurs a fee.  Maybe only a few of them are like this.. 

And I wouldn't be surprised if the employer got a report listing all the purchases made on the card.   

In the late 70's I was working for a small publishing company. The company opened a checking account in a local bank for each employee and every other Friday our pay was deposited into it.  We were allowed 5 free checks per pay period. If you could demonstrate that you had more regular expenses, they would approve more free checks.  People who wrote checks for "inappropriate" expenses were counseled.

[datagirl]

Here's a local story that is happening elsewhere, too.

http://blog.al.com/live/2011/12/credit_card_skimming_is_hidden.html

It pays to be vigilant.

-DG

[DarkHumour]

Looks like the transaction was cancelled and my money refunded. 

The overdrafts are still active though.  But this is good enough. For now. 

So my faith in faceless corporations is restored ! And the criminal's plan failed ! It's an Xmas miracle !

DarkHumour

[Origisaurus]

Got two of 'em going on right now.

#1, Doctor's office apparently miscoded and while my insurance bill won't change, the Dx is way off.  I can assure you that I do not have cervical cancer.  I attribute this to poor quality due to insurance companies loading down doctors with paperwork.

#2 is a bit more serious.  A vendor that I did business quite a while back charged me out of the blue for I don't know what.  And has not been responsive to queries.  The bank says I should work it out with the vendor.  Thing is the vendor has no business presence in my state, but of course the bank does.  So if I get a judgment, it will only be collectible against the bank.  Why do they not get that they are on the hook regardless?  I attribute this to banks and vendors just not staffing up to business demands.

Somewhat related, an auto parts store sold my son the wrong part - the number on the box was correct, but the part inside wasn't even close.  And they are arguing about it!  I can't believe that they don't understand that merchants almost always lose in small claims court and they have to pay cash money to the consumer, including all the filing costs.  It's almost always cheaper to give the customer his money back even if he's dead wrong.

[TRexx]

A vendor that I did business quite a while back charged me out of the blue for I don't know what.  And has not been responsive to queries.  The bank says I should work it out with the vendor. 

Whenever I've found a bogus charge, I informed the bank and they didn't pay the vendor and I deducted that amount from my payment. In almost all cases it was some sort of clerical error and the vendor reversed the charge.  But there was one who wouldn't return my calls and ignored my letter. The charge kept appearing on my statement, flagged as "in dispute".   After a few months the bank told me they were deleting it and it was the vendor's responsibility to come after me for payment. I never heard another word.