[Lex Computer & Tech Group/LCTG] Fraud Issue: Check Your Bank Account Running Balance

Thu Nov 21 09:27:25 PST 2024

Here was my recent adventure:

I went to Theatre Pharmacy to cick up a prescription. The cashier had me run my credit card, then I asked a question, she flushed the transaction and got the answer, then we ran the card again and it was rejected. She shredded the older receipt. Then I got a text from the credit card company suspecting fraud, and I answered it, then we tried again and it was rejected again, then I texted them back and they asked me to call their fraud line. I did, wnt thru a long questinnaire to establish my identity, theysaid they lifted the blockage and I ran the card again, rejected again.I called them back and they said the transaction had gone through 10 minutes before.  The pharmacy people ( 2 of them plus the pharmacist) looked at their system and had no record of the transaction. I held the credit card people on the phone while talking to the pharmacy people, nobody could tell me how I could get my prescription. We tried the card again, this time the register flashed a note saying it was a duplicate charge. I asked how it could be a duplicate if the charge had never been transacted, nobody knew, but they clearly had a problem with their POS system. They called the owner of Theatre Pharmacy, he took down information, I suggested they reprint the old receipt and they figured out how to do that, and they agreed to give me my prescription, they said they would call me later to verify something. I let the credit card fraud people go. So I finally walked out of the pharmacy with my prescription. They never called back.

Alan Millner
amillner at alum.mit.edu
home 781-862-7893. cell 781-999-4346
48 North St., Lexington MA 02420

On Nov 21, 2024, at 10:10 AM, Mitchell I. Wolfe via LCTG <lctg at lists.toku.us> wrote:

With credit cards, the Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA) provides a 60-day window from the statement date to dispute a charge.

I've had to dispute charges successfully several times, including:

Someone booked an airline flight from Jordan to Chicago on 9/11. American Express automatically notified me of potential fraud. I also reported to the FBI of potentially more nefarious outcomes.
Charges erroneously appeared on a VISA card for Amazon and other purchases. I suspected a credit card skimmer leak at a Plymouth MA gas station. BTW fraudsters often try stolen credit cards at gas stations given less security for the self-service pumps.
A vendor mistakenly billed for unsolicited future services. The vendor did not correct the charges.
A prepaid VoIP provider closed down. Was able to get credit for the remaining unused time.
Undoubtedly other LCTG members have experienced similar predicaments...

-- Mitch

On 2024-11-21 08:12, Robert Primak via LCTG wrote:

>  
> My experience (except the possible online origin of the fraud) would not have been impacted by using credit vs. debit.
>  
> The point I'm making is, if ANY payment method is declined at a store, that does not necessarily mean your bank or card issuer will not honor the charge. You need to make sure your bank knows you paid using another method and therefore the charge is in error. 
>  
> Things get murkier if you use payments apps or digital wallets. Proving that a payment is in error or that it went to the wrong party can get tricky in these cases. Some of my doctors and my landlord require using payment apps. This infuriates me, due to the inherent insecurity of such apps. 
>  
> -- Bob Primak 
>  
>  
> On Thursday, November 21, 2024 at 08:06:26 AM EST, Joel Shwimer via LCTG <lctg at lists.toku.us> wrote:
>  
>  
> Another clear take-away is do NOT use a DEBIT card.  This was the advice provided in a lecture I attended years ago by Frank Abagnale Jr. who was the subject of the movie "Catch me if you can" and is now a consultant to the FBI on security matters.
> 
> Joel
> 
> On 11/21/2024 6:23 AM, Drew King (dking65--- via LCTG wrote:
> Very good advice.
> 
> If you get declined at a point of sale the first thing you should do is call the phone number on the back of your card and inquire with the bank. Let them know that you went to the supermarket and the transaction was declined and you paid cash so that you have it on record possibly even recorded.
> 
> Several years ago I was starting a new job and made some purchases that were not typical in preparation for my new job and my bank eventually questioned the transactions because they saw a lot more activity than normal.
> It was all regular shopping to buy things I needed and also go on vacation and so I was spending money on airfare and food and clothing and entertainment  I wouldn't normally do.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On November 21, 2024 6:05:41 AM EST, Robert Primak via LCTG <lctg at lists.toku.us> <mailto:lctg at lists.toku.us> wrote:
> My ATM/Debit MasterCard was involved in a fraudulent charge attempt. The Bank froze the Debit Card immediately when the suspicious activity happened. Hours later, not having checked my phone messages, I tried to make a food purchase at an automatic self-checkout POS terminal using the same card. Here's what happened.
>  
> The Star Market POS system at Self-Checkoout and the Registers declined my Card, as they should have. (I eventually ended up paying cash for the purchase.) But the Star Market charges still showed up in the Bank Ledger as valid, even though my Card was frozen at the time the Card was declined by the Star Market POS System. This should have been programmatically impossible!
>  
> Take-home lesson: If you ever experience a freeze on a credit or debit card due to suspected fraud, DO NOT rely on store POS systems which appear to have "declined" the card not to reinstate the charges. As soon as you learn of the issue, go to your bank or use their online banking app or web site, and CHECK THE RUNNING (Ledger) BALANCE! If anything suspicious is processing or has been recorded as processed, NOTIFY YOUR BANK ASAP. 
>  
> I appear to have been successful at getting the Star Market system error(s) removed from my bank account charges. But this is not always guaranteed. 
>  
> -- Bob Primak
>  
> -- 
> Sent from my Android device with K-9 Mail.
> 
> 
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