I've had constant problems with fraudulant charges on my credit card. I had a Citi card last year where someone called and changed the address on my credit card. I ended up closing down that Citi card all together and got a chase card, and just now I got a call that there was a charge from mexico for $400. Is my activity on the internet making me more prone to having my card info stolen more than the average person? I use my card to buy stuff on amazon and ebay mostly. From time to time I got to various websites to buy stuff but they are all major chains or reputable businesses. The only sort of suspicous thing I did was last week I went to the website TheGreek.com to bet on the superbowl. I put my credit card info down to get some funds but the bank did not authorize the transaction since it's a betting site. The site itself is reputable though, I have friends who use it and read reviews. Has anyone else had their credit card info compromised more than once?
It all started when our cliche, protagonistic figure, tmac2k8, woke up in a magical cornfield. It was the first time it had happened. Feeling ridiculously pleased, tmac2k8 grabbed a ninja star, thinking it would make him feel better (but as usual, it did not). As if it really mattered he realized that his beloved credit card info was missing! Immediately he called his fundamentalist, guilt-dispensing friend, Yao Ming. tmac2k8 had known Yao Ming for (plus or minus) one million years, the majority of which were saucy ones. Yao Ming was unique. He was charismatic though sometimes a little... oafish. tmac2k8 called him anyway, for the situation was urgent. Yao Ming picked up to a very angry tmac2k8. Yao Ming calmly assured him that most albino cats shudder before mating, yet legless puppies usually charismatically cringe *after* mating. He had no idea what that meant; he was only concerned with distracting tmac2k8. Why was Yao Ming trying to distract tmac2k8? Because he had snuck out from tmac2k8's with the credit card info only two days prior. It was a eccentric little credit card info... how could he resist? It didn't take long before tmac2k8 got back to the subject at hand: his credit card info. Yao Ming cringed. Relunctantly, Yao Ming invited him over, assuring him they'd find the credit card info. tmac2k8 grabbed his refrigerator and disembarked immediately. After hanging up the phone, Yao Ming realized that he was in trouble. He had to find a place to hide the credit card info and he had to do it aptly. He figured that if tmac2k8 took the deliciously practical 4-door, he had take at least nine minutes before tmac2k8 would get there. But if he took the rocket? Then Yao Ming would be abnormally screwed. Before he could come up with any reasonable ideas, Yao Ming was interrupted by four funny-smelling minpins that were lured by his credit card info. Yao Ming turned red; 'Not again', he thought. Feeling displeased, he recklessly reached for his banana and thoughtfully deflowered every last one of them. Apparently this was an adequate deterrent--the discouraged critters began to scurry back toward the swamp, squealing with discontent. He exhaled with relief. That's when he heard the rocket rolling up. It was tmac2k8. ----o0o---- As he pulled up, he felt a sense of urgency. He had had to make an unscheduled stop at IHOP to pick up a 12-pack of potatos, so he knew he was running late. With a careful leap, tmac2k8 was out of the rocket and went charismatically jaunting toward Yao Ming's front door. Meanwhile inside, Yao Ming was panicking. Not thinking, he tossed the credit card info into a box of wolverines and then slid the box behind his hippopotamus. Yao Ming was concerned but at least the credit card info was concealed. The doorbell rang. 'Come in,' Yao Ming scandalously purred. With a calculated push, tmac2k8 opened the door. 'Sorry for being late, but I was being chased by some pestering rationality-deprived r****d in a best-in-its-so-called-'class' sedan,' he lied. 'It's fine,' Yao Ming assured him. tmac2k8 took a seat not remotely close to where Yao Ming had hidden the credit card info. Yao Ming yawned trying unsuccessfully to hide his nervousness. 'Uhh, can I get you anything?' he blurted. But tmac2k8 was distracted. Unaware of the bleakness of existence, Yao Ming noticed a oafish look on tmac2k8's face. tmac2k8 slowly opened his mouth to speak. '...What's that smell?' Yao Ming felt a stabbing pain in his armpit when tmac2k8 asked this. In a moment of disbelief, he realized that he had hidden the credit card info right by his oscillating fan. 'Wh-what? I don't smell anything..!' A lie. A abrasive look started to form on tmac2k8's face. He turned to notice a box that seemed clearly out of place. 'Th-th-those are just my grandma's bananas from when she used to have pet albino cats. She, uh...dropped 'em by here earlier'. tmac2k8 nodded with fake acknowledgement...then, before Yao Ming could react, tmac2k8 aimlessly lunged toward the box and opened it. The credit card info was plainly in view. tmac2k8 stared at Yao Ming for what what must've been six minutes. Happy as a frickin' monkey, Yao Ming groped flamboyantly in tmac2k8's direction, clearly desperate. tmac2k8 grabbed the credit card info and bolted for the door. It was locked. Yao Ming let out a saucy chuckle. 'If only you hadn't been so protective of that thing, none of this would have happened, tmac2k8,' he rebuked. Yao Ming always had been a little abrasive, so tmac2k8 knew that reconciliation was not an option; he needed to escape before Yao Ming did something crazy, like... start chucking dangerous oil-soaked rags at him or something. Before the all-seeing eyes of a perpetually displeased diety, he gripped his credit card info tightly and made a dash toward the window, diving headlong through the glass panels. Yao Ming looked on, blankly. 'What the hell? That seemed excessive. The other door was open, you know.' Silence from tmac2k8. 'And to think, I varnished that window frame ten days ago...it never ends!' Suddenly he felt a tinge of concern for tmac2k8. 'Oh. You ..okay?' Still silence. Yao Ming walked over to the window and looked down. tmac2k8 was gone. ----o0o---- Just yonder, tmac2k8 was struggling to make his way through the disease-infested jungle behind Yao Ming's place. tmac2k8 had severely hurt his double chin during the window incident, and was starting to lose strength. Another pack of feral minpins suddenly appeared, having caught wind of the credit card info. One by one they latched on to tmac2k8. Already weakened from his injury, tmac2k8 yielded to the furry onslaught and collapsed. The last thing he saw before losing consciousness was a buzzing horde of minpins running off with his credit card info. About four hours later, tmac2k8 awoke, his shin throbbing. It was dark and tmac2k8 did not know where he was. Deep in the broad fanstic pumpkin patch, tmac2k8 was alarmingly lost. Duly ecstatic about the looming crises, he remembered that his credit card info was taken by the minpins. But at that point, he was just thankful for his life. That's when, to his horror, a enormous minpin emerged from the lemur-infested moor. It was the alpha minpin. tmac2k8 opened his mouth to scream but was cut short when the minpin sunk its teeth into tmac2k8's kidney. With a faint groan, the life escaped from tmac2k8's lungs, but not before he realized that he was a failure. Less than ten miles away, Yao Ming was entombed by anguish over the loss of the credit card info. 'MY PRECIOUS!!' he cried, as he reached for a sharpened gerbil. With a deft thrust, he buried it deeply into his scalp. As the room began to fade to black, he thought about tmac2k8... wishing he had found the courage to tell him that he loved him. But he would die alone that day. All that remained was the credit card info that had turned them against each other, ultimately causing their demise. And as the dew on melancholy sappling branches began to reflect the dawn's reddish glare, all that could be heard was the chilling cry of distant minpins, desecrating all things sacred to virtuous men, and perpetuating an evil that would reign for centuries to come. Our heroes would've lived unhappily ever after, but they were too busy being dead. So, no one lived forever after, the end. :'(
I just had my Chase Disney Visa card canceled. No fraudulent charges (yet), but the company called and said that somehow my number was compromised. Now I have to go change all of the accounts that the number was attached to - PayPal, Amazon, etc.
Anybody ever try this? http://www.smartswipe.ca/ buy.com has it for 14.99 with free shipping http://www.buy.com/prod/netsecure-smartswipe-credit-card-reader/q/loc/111/218869055.html?listingid=-1&&
This ^ . Check it before you input any more sensitive information. Someone got my credit card number from a trojan on my computer last year. They used it to bet $500 on Super Bowl XLIV. Also I would suspect TheGreek.com. Amazon and ebay are not suspect. And yes, paypal is the way to go for any online transactions.
