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Credit card thieves call card holders in hopes of gathering information. Date published: 8/26/2006
By KATHERINE ROBERTS
Although credit card scams are as old as credit cards themselves, their outward appearances change to catch victims off guard. Scammers take advantage of their unsuspecting victims' trust, said Tom Gallagher, president of the Better Business Bureau of Central Virginia. "That's why they're called 'con men'--they get your confidence," he said. "Any good scam is very easy." According to a scam-alert e-mail, thieves--pretending to represent Visa or Mastercard--call victims. Ironically, they claim to be verifying identity theft. The caller tells the victim that a phony charge has been made to his or her account. When the victim denies the purchase, the scammer says that the company will add a credit to the account. All the victim needs to do is read his or her three-digit personal identification number to prove ownership of the card. The PIN is key to this scam. For many purchases, especially Internet and telephone orders, cardholders no longer need to physically present their cards. Cards have three-digit codes, known as CVC2 or CW2 codes, that do not appear on receipts. They are used for phone and online orders to safeguard against theft. "If [scammers are] good enough, they can get it from you," Gallagher said. "They'll give you a phony one and you'll say, 'Oh, no, that's not it.'" Once equipped with the PIN, thieves can spend hundreds of dollars on unauthorized charges. It usually takes an individual purchase of $500 or more for a company to flag the card as having been stolen. The BBB hears reports of scams like this several times a year. However, Jay Hopkins, a Visa spokesman, said that although no victim has ever called to file a complaint, the scam described is possible. To avoid falling victim, "Don't give out any information," Gallagher advised. Scammers pretend to be bank auditors or representatives of the credit card issuer. But if the call were really from any of those people, they would not need your personal information--they would already have it. And companies such as Visa and Mastercard will never call or e-mail cardholders directly. "Visa is a member association, not an issuer," Hopkins said. "We have no direct relationship with cardholders." Hopkins recommended that cardholders not give out personal information unless they initiated the call or e-mail. Cardholders should "watch [their] credit card statements very closely," Gallagher said, to catch unauthorized charges. Sometimes thieves do not immediately use the cards; charges may appear months later. Visa continuously monitors its cardholders' accounts to stop suspicious activity--including changes in Social Security numbers or addresses, and unusually large purchases compared with normal spending patterns, according to its Web site. Other credit card companies have similar security programs. However, the majority of thefts are self-detected. If you believe that you have been a victim of a scam, call your credit card issuer to cancel your card and receive a new number. According to consumer-action To reach KATHERINE ROBERTS:
1. Be respectful. No personal attacks.
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