credit card fraud: PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
Here is an example of when credit card fraud hits close to home.
My co-worker Renee had her VISA debit card stolen on Monday. She was trying to remember how/when it happened because she had just used it that day to pay for snacks at a Tesoro gas station.
As she retraced her steps verbally to me, Renee mentioned that the clerk had fumbled the receipt & card as she was handing them back and dropped everything on the floor. Renee guessed that the card was still on the floor and someone picked it up.
She called her bank as soon as she discovered the missing card, but the thief had already charged over $300 at Black Elk Leather (a local native arts/crafts/leatherworks store) and also at a KFC (thievery is hungry business!) and Wal*Mart (a hungry and frugal thief).
So the next day, Renee went to Black Elk to speak to the manager and let them know what had happened and that the bank would be contacting them. The manager was apologetic and said that she would be training her employees to check ID from now on.
Fast forward to today. The manager of Black Elk calls Renee to let her know that the perp came back and tried to use cash this time but because Renee had talked with the manager, the cashier at Black Elk remembered the thief and called the cops!
Turns out that it was the Tesoro clerk. She must have been doing this scam for quite awhile because Renee said the girl was really smooth about dropping the card & receipt and handing "everything" back.
The moral of our story is that you should always check to make sure your card is back in your possession after you use it.
Oh, and don't trust crafty, hungry, frugal people who like leather.
My co-worker Renee had her VISA debit card stolen on Monday. She was trying to remember how/when it happened because she had just used it that day to pay for snacks at a Tesoro gas station.
As she retraced her steps verbally to me, Renee mentioned that the clerk had fumbled the receipt & card as she was handing them back and dropped everything on the floor. Renee guessed that the card was still on the floor and someone picked it up.
She called her bank as soon as she discovered the missing card, but the thief had already charged over $300 at Black Elk Leather (a local native arts/crafts/leatherworks store) and also at a KFC (thievery is hungry business!) and Wal*Mart (a hungry and frugal thief).
So the next day, Renee went to Black Elk to speak to the manager and let them know what had happened and that the bank would be contacting them. The manager was apologetic and said that she would be training her employees to check ID from now on.
Fast forward to today. The manager of Black Elk calls Renee to let her know that the perp came back and tried to use cash this time but because Renee had talked with the manager, the cashier at Black Elk remembered the thief and called the cops!
Turns out that it was the Tesoro clerk. She must have been doing this scam for quite awhile because Renee said the girl was really smooth about dropping the card & receipt and handing "everything" back.
The moral of our story is that you should always check to make sure your card is back in your possession after you use it.
Oh, and don't trust crafty, hungry, frugal people who like leather.