SCAM ALERT – New VISA scam

[Scuba]

http://www.wicrimeprevention.com/?p=960

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?’

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.

It appears that this Is a very active scam, and evidently quite successful

[hobbit709]

1. People will fall for anything

[Lifelong Protester]

2. The problem with these scams is that they often

target the elderly-most of whom are compliant with the request. The caller can sound pretty ófficial''.

[Kelvin Mace]

4. *sigh*

You would be surprised how many "intelligent" people with no mental impairment fall for this. It is a matter of gullibility. People are insufficiently skeptical of situations.

[passiveporcupine]

10. People are gullible to supposed authority. nt

[Kelvin Mace]

3. Whenever you are called by "security"

(And they legitimately DO call when something comes up), tell them you will call them back, then dial the number on your card.

[Curmudgeoness]

12. +1

[pipi_k]

27. Yep...

and that's the problem.

We've gotten legitimate calls in the past about unauthorized cc activity.

I always say, oh, I would never allow myself to be sucked into something like this, but the truth is, on the spur of the moment, it's all too easy to fall for the scam.

Thank you for posting this.

One thing to remember is to do what you've suggested. Call the number on the back of the card.

As I read the OP, I thought, well damn...if someone asks me to verify a number, I'm going to demand that they tell me what my number is, since they are supposed to have all the information anyway.

[dickthegrouch]

5. Give them a wrong number

They will still say "That's correct" and then you KNOW it's an invalid call.

If they manage to tell you it's wrong - it means they are actively trying to scam the card. Hang up and dial *57 (on an AT&T system, others may have different codes), this logs the calling number into the phone company's fraud database and can be retrieved by the Police, whom you call next (not an emergency call, just call their regular complaint number, or file an online complaint giving the exact time of the call and the incoming number if you have it).

[Bernardo de La Paz]

11. +1. Make the fraudsters spin their wheels while the police investigate. Also

Also it leaves more of a trail for the police and card company to nab them, since they may go into stores in person with fabricated cards or order goods online.

[CBGLuthier]

6. That number is not a PIN, it is a CSC, card seciurity code. Nothing personal about it.

It was a good article until they got lazy and called the CSC a PIN.

[denverbill]

7. I don't get it. Without the card number, the CSC or pin doesn't do any good.

How are they getting the card number?

[Egalitarian Thug]

8. You would probably be surprised at how easy it is to get that information.

Those stories you occasionally hear about this or that giant company's database being hacked? It happens many times every day and the data is traded on a global network.

[DesMoinesDem]

9. Card skimmers or hackers.

[Curmudgeoness]

13. You have no idea how many people

who work in businesses have access to your card number. Luckily, most of those people are not criminals, but it only takes one. Some businesses are much more secure than others. As someone who works in an accounting department, I can tell you that if you use the card, your number is available to me.

[Tab]

17. According to PCI compliance

Companies are allowed to store card numbers (with restrictions) but under no circumstances are they allowed to store the CVC code (it goes by different acronyms). So a card number without a CVC code is limited usage-wise. With a CVC code, it implies you're in posession of the card, so if you know that number, it's considered authoritative.

[denverbill]

30. Apparently, that's not true for all companies. Check this out.

http://lifehacker.com/target-hacked-credit-cards-and-private-data-for-40-mil-1486402421?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+lifehacker%2Ffull+%28Lifehacker%29

[Tab]

31. It's true for all companies that want to process credit cards

Now, Visa (or MasterCard) may not call them on it just yet, but when they demand PCI compliance you'll have to demonstrate, outsource, or give up processing capabilities. There are a lot of companies, I'm sure, accepting CCs that are not in compliance, even big ones. But nowadays it's a big liability issue, particularly if an employee can save off a name, number, address, CVC/CVW, expiration date, etc. They'd be nuts to not try to be in compliance.

[winter is coming]

14. Remember: it only takes a few minutes to hang up, dial the phone number on your credit card, and

discuss things with someone you know is a representative of the credit card company. Same thing goes for emails. Never use the provided links; always call or go to the web address you know is the correct one for that company. The extra few minutes you spend getting to the right person/place is worth it and I've never had a credit card company representative respond negatively to my calling to check if a contact I received was legitimate.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

15. good advice.

This thread's a good reminder to keep your radar on.

[dipsydoodle]

18. There are in fact other scams which suggest you do so.

They keep the line open and play a dialing tone down the line to make you think you're placing a fresh call - you're not. Best call the credit card company using a different line.

[winter is coming]

19. Interesting. I hadn't heard of that. n/t

[dipsydoodle]

20. Was occuring in the UK.

The scam was even more sophisticated. The card holder was told not to destroy the card : the card company would collect it within hours. The scammers collected the cards and used them.

[winter is coming]

21. Collect the card?? Hell, that's an enormous red flag. At most, you'd be told to destroy it. n/t

[dipsydoodle]

23. You're not accounting for the "born yesterday" syndrome.

Believe it or not there are many mugs out there in the world.

[justamama83]

16. First off...."Visa"....

would probably not be calling you. Any fraud detection is done by the issuing bank- (Chase, Citibank, Wells, etc) not "Visa" or "MasterCard" they are associations that make the rules and charge the fees that merchants pay to swipe the card. The CVV (Card Verification Value) is the 3 digit code located on the back of the card. This number is requested mostly when you are processing a non face to face transaction- basically to confirm you have the card in your possession. Bottom line...and this is advice from someone who works with credit cards, associations and fraud every day ....if someone calls you and claims to be from a card company and they have to ask you for the card info please ask them for a number to call them back and verify what they are saying is true or just hang up and call the credit card's customer service line. A legitimate company will have all the information they need on file- they just need the information to prove that they are speaking to the right person.

[ProdigalJunkMail]

22. no, VISA most certainly has a service that may call

I have been contacted by them, and because I was suspicious I called my bank directly. they then gave me the phone number of the 'fraud dept' and it was the same people who has just called me.

sP

[rickford66]

26. VISA does call

I received a call about a purchase at SEARS I didn't make. VISA flagged it because the "buyer" was going to pick up the purchase at store in another state. Another time a Tiffany's store called about a very large purchase which they put on hold until it could be verified that I actually was the buyer. I didn't give them any info because it could have been a scam, but called VISA directly and they cancelled the purchase and issued me a new card. I used to travel a lot for work and any number of people had access to my credit card. I was denied the use of my own card several times because of purchases out of the ordinary and had to call VISA to verify my identity. They are very good at catching fraud. I was advised to let them know if and when I was traveling.

[justamama83]

28. It's not the association "Visa"

It is not the association Visa that is calling - it is your your card issuer the one who sent you the card in the first place- they monitor for fraudulent activity- they are two totally different things.

Here is an excerpt from Visa USA's website.

It's important for consumers to know that Visa will not call or e-mail cardholders to request their personal account information. Visa call centers do not initiate outbound telemarketing calls. Consumers should not respond to any e-mails or phone calls with requests for any personal card information and are advised to immediately report the situation to local law enforcement as well as the financial institution that issued their card. Cardholders should also know that Visa's zero liability* fraud policy ensures that they are not held responsible for any unauthorized purchases.

For more information you can check here...
[link:http://usa.visa.com/personal/security/learn-the-facts/protection-tips/telephone-protection.html|

[rickford66]

29. you are correct

Most of us associate "Visa" with Visa though. But reporting this to local law enforcement is probably a waste of time. They wouldn't have the time or resources to do anything about it. AARP and local associations for the elderly already warn the most vulnerable people, the oldsters, about scams.

[Skittles]

24. I have a very easy rule with these kinds of things

if my bank / Visa / or whatever company calls me for anything I will call them back if I think it may be legit - this, not even close

[Wilms]

25. ^