Telephone credit card scam
Fraudsters tend to be smooth operators, personable and persuasive and able to fool people into believing they are what they are not.
These skills are particularly useful with a type of telephone credit card scam that has recently come to light.
In these kinds of scam, fraudsters will contact someone by telephone and say that he is from the security and fraud department at VISA. He will then give a fictitious name and badge number, and say that your card has been flagged for an unusual spend patter. He will claim to be calling to verify if you had purchased an item (and will specify any item) for a particular amount from a marketing company.
The fraudster will then claim to be issuing a refund to your card for the amount , but will need to check some details with you.
He will ask for:
- Your address
- Your card number
- The security number on the signature strip across the back of your card
The fraudster may already know details such as your address, and will just ask you to confirm it.
You will then be told to ring the 0800 number on your card for verification of this `investigation´ and given a fictitious reference number.
The chances are high that when you call your genuine card provider they will tell you that there is no such investigation in progress. They will also tell you that money to the amount you have discussed with the fraudster has been withdrawn from your card.
Genuine providers, such as VISA, Mastercard, Barclay Card and so on will never ask for your card details over the phone. Never give any details out to callers unless you are certain who they are.
Always try to find out as much information as you can about the people you are dealing with before giving out any personal information.
If you have any suspicions then don´t give out your details - a genuine caller will understand your security concerns.