got these warnings via email
About a month ago there was a woman standing by the mall entrance passing out flyers to all the women going in. The woman had written the flyer herself to tell about an experience she had, so that she might warn other women.
The previous day, this woman had finished shopping, went out to her car and discovered that she had a flat. She got the jack out of the trunk and began to change the flat.
A nice man dressed in business suit and carrying a briefcase walked up to her and said, "I noticed you're changing a flat tire. Would you like me to take care of it for you?"
The woman was grateful for his offer and accepted his help.
They chatted amiably while the man changed the flat, and then put the flat tire and the jack in the trunk, shut it and dusted his hands off.
The woman thanked him profusely, and as she was about to get in her car, the man told her that he left his car around on the other side of the mall, and asked if she would mind giving him a lift to his car.
She was a little surprised and she asked him why his car was on other side. He said he got turned around in the mall and left through the wrong exit, and now he was running late and his car was clear around the other side of the mall.
The woman hated to tell him "no" because he had just rescued her from having to change her flat tire all by herself, but she felt uneasy. Then she remembered seeing the man put his briefcase in her trunk before shutting it and before he asked her for a ride to his car.
She told him that she'd be happy to drive him around to his car, but she just remembered one last thing she needed to buy. She told the man that he could wait for her; she would be as quick as she could be.
She hurried into the mall, and told a security guard what had happened; the guard came out to her car with her, but the man had left.
They opened the trunk, took out his locked briefcase and took it down to the police station. The police opened it (ostensibly to look for ID so they could return it to the man). What they found was rope, duct tape, and knives & when the police checked her "flat" tire, there was nothing wrong with it; the air had simply been let out.
It was obvious what the man's intention was, and obvious that he had carefully thought it out in advance.
The woman was blessed to have escaped harm. How much worse it would have been if she had children with her and had them wait in the car while the man fixed the tire or if she had a baby strapped into a car seat, or if she'd gone against her judgment and given him a lift.
I'd like you to forward this to all the women you know. It may save a life.
A candle is not dimmed by lighting another candle.
I was going to send this to the ladies only; but guys, if you love your mothers, wives, sisters, daughters, etc., you may want to pass it on to them, as well.
Send this to any woman you know that may need to be reminded that the world we live in has a lot of crazies in it.... better safe than sorry.
PLEASE BE SAFE AND NOT SORRY! JUST A WARNING TO ALWAYS BE ALERT AND USE YOUR HEAD!!!
WARNING...New Credit Card Scam.
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 next 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 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. Are we 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. Long
story made short - we made a real fraud report and closed the VISA account.
VISA is reissuing us a new number. What the scammers want 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 would 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 to 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.