I feel that in an era of data and security breaches, it might be good to have a thread about personal stories in which we’ve been hacked, had our credit card details swiped, and generally had to contend with the frustration of the garbage security our institutions provide.
I just got a message about how my bank detected a fraudulent transaction of $3.64 from a vendor with an unpronounceable string of consonants. I hit no, and my card is now closed. This is the third time this year. I’d blame the bank, but this is the card I used which I got a warning about from Newegg, when they had their data breach recently and lost a fuckton of credit details.
I also have a weird pending charge for a car insurance company… which I had years ago when I had a car. Part of me wonders if they just now cashed an old check I don’t remember, but I have every intention of telling my bank not to honor it, since it’s literally been years and if they still want the money they can ask nicely. But, I strongly suspect it’s connected. Especially since the amount seems off from what I used to pay.
None that I am aware of.
Long ago I had a company card that I never activated (cause the trip they were gonna send me on fell through before the card arrived). A year or so later I got called about it being used at a dry cleaners of all places and I asked how as it was currently 2000+ miles away from me and I had never activated the card on top of that.
Keep an eye out for tiny purchases for innocuous things like nonprofits, online candy vendors, things that cost under 10 bucks.
These companies are legit, but these transactions are used to test card validity.
Friend of mine had the charity donation thing a few times in a year. My dad I am pretty sure got hit by a skimmer at a gas station in southern Michigan last spring.
I have never (so far, and as far as I know) had my credit hacked, but I had someone file a tax return in my name. Apparently a whole batch from ADP was compromised, several others at my office had the same thing happen. Saving grace was that they only got my data and filed single, which sent up flags at the IRS. The one single woman at the office found out when they refused to issue her refund because she “already filed.” Mine was a quick fix, hers was a long, drawn out mess proving who she was and all.
Did she eventually get it straightened out and get her refund? I worry about this because I’ve worked for small and now defunct businesses in the past and I always wonder what happened with all of my information.
She did. She said it took hours on the phone and scanning and emailing documents and such, but it got straightened out. Only long term consequence is she can’t file electronically. She has to mail paper forms.
