I get a call from my bank: Hello Mr. X, this is so and so from your bank. I am calling because your bank account has been compromised and we have limited your access. Are you able to get to a bank machine to change your pin within the next two hours…
First off, what the hell is the point of chip cards anyway – especially if you can use them at the old machines without chip readers? More places swipe my debit card then use the chip. Why bother?
Second, why can’t you tell me where my card was skimmed – maybe I would like to um… not use that machine anymore? Stop using a business who takes part / allows others to take part in such crime? Why is it such a big secret – if you know this happened somewhere, then tell me where – I deserve to know where I was victimized.
God, I am sick of my card being skimmed and the “meh” attitude of the bank… —Skimmed thrice…
This article appears in Sep 23-29, 2010.
if they did that o.p., then the banks would not be able to rob you, using high interest rates, user fees, and other bullshit. the only way to beat that, is to keep your money home, not a wise idea, but the only alternative in some cases.
Or work for them…
I don’t see the point in chip cards, either. If someone gets your card, whether or not it has a chip, all they need is your PIN.
it does work better on credit cards though because you used to just forge and move along…
now they need whatever the pin is on it.
debit cards, ya, I got nothing….
I also don’t even have a chip debit card yet.
Luckily though they are getting faster and you’re not just sitting there with a blank expression (or perhaps a worried expression based on your account) for a whole minute while the thing validates your purchase.
zZz…sorry to hijack this post…but I can’t get my question mark or quotations or any symbols to work on my computer – my question mark comes up as É and my AT symbol (for email addresses) come up as ” – how do I get it to stop
RC if you check out the language setting for your keyboard, it’s likely set to multi-lingual or something instead of English. It happens all the time on my home computer (obviously there is a shortcut). If you have Vista, there’s a little keyboard icon on your tray, and you can change it from there.
Sucks to be you OP. Obviously must be one of the businesses you frequent if it’s happened more than once.
There`s no keyboard icon…but I just realized that it`s only when I`m in outlook. RRRRRRRR I asked the guy from a certain medical PC service and he said it`s because my computer gets over heated…WTF. If I shut down and restart it goes away for awhile.
? um, no. solution works but that’s not the problem. it works because you’re rebooting and the default settings are reset with that so it appears to fix the issue…. until whatever it is happens again and overrides your keyboard setting. It could even be because of an auto-update or something like that to sync every day or 12 hour cycle….
I know my desktop @ work does that…. syncs with a different region even if I change it back to atlantic.
Anyways, there’s a little toolbar you can add to tell you which setting you’re in (and you can alter from there too to manually select the appropriate one)
in outlook, do a search for ‘Language bar’
or search for “Enable a keyboard layout in Windows XP” to set up your keyboard any way you like….
you sound like you maybe being scammed op, don’t give out any info on the phone. go to your regular branch and make inquiries
I agree paingirl, this sounds like the start of a scam. How do you even change your PIN at an ATM? OP, call your bank’s security dept and tell them what happened. Don’t talk to anyone on the phone claiming to be from your bank about security issues. Ask for their name and employee ID and how to call them back via your bank’s public 1-800 number listed on the back of your debit card.
Thanks zZz.
OP you are being scammed. The bank would cancel your card and tell you to come in and get a replacement. And the bank would tell you where it happened. My girlfriend had this happen at a fast food chain and her bank called her right away, explained the situation and had the money that was stolen put back in her account.
OB, the bank will NEVER telephone you tell you any such thing. This is a scam.
For everyone else, should you ever get a telephone call or an e-mail, unsolicited from you bank, the chances are extremely great that it is a scam. Go to your bank or telephone your branch and report it. If it is legit, they will tell you. For those using computers, they will leave you a message in the secure area of your account. They will NEVER EVER send you anything via your regular e-mail. ALWAYS contact your branch if in any doubt at all. NEVER give your personal or banking information.
You need lessons in detecting a scam.
You can only change your pin at a teller counter during open hours.
Drop the aggression and talk to the people in the branch.
Someone called me the other day and said they needed to make updates to my credit card because it had been suspended.
I asked what bank my card was with and they said Royal Bank. WRONG.
I hate these scams.. not because I’m gullible enough to fall for them but because some other people are.
(Not saying this IS what happened to OP, just venting)
The bank will not always tell you where it happened. I know of 4 incidents…3 co-workers and a family member that have had their chip cards compromised in the last few months and the bank would not tell any of them where it happened.
They refused to name the place but in one case they said it was a convenience store and my co-worker knew she only used it in one store since she got the chip card.
In my family members case the card was only used once…to buy a ticket for a certain local charity lottery with the chance to win a house, trips and many other prizes.
The bank will not tell you to go to an ATM within two hours. They would want you to go to the bank and in the meantime they may either totally disable your card or allow you to phone authorize a transfer of funds into a different account that you can use until the mess is sorted out.
also watch out for older folks in your clan, they can be easily scammed through the internet/phone. even if the e-mail looks official it usually isn’t. forewarn your loved ones
Sorry, I set up my RBC card at an ATM (RBC of course).
Changing PIN number won’t do anything if your card has been compromised. The thieves will just generate your newest PIN number in a few minutes and they’ll have full access to your account.
The same thing happened to my card a few weeks ago, apparently someone tryed to access my banking information? and they placed a limit on my card.. the bank called me and i had to get a new card.. the teller told me that he gad been replacing cards all week, and that it was happening to a bunch of other people, i’m with scotiabank
Crazy shit OP. None of my cards have that nasty chip, and none have ever been compromised. What ATM are you using?
i’d say about 10% of interac is chip in Vancouver
I work for one of the big five banks answering your calls about compromised cards.
The person answering your call has NO more information then what they provide to you and though I can assure you I understand your frustration, being rude, angry or condescending will not make this information appear on the screen.
I don’t think people always understand that merchants, more often than not are also the victims of fraud in these cases as the card scimmers are placed without their knowledge. Telling you it happened at Joes Store will probably deter you from going back even though it isn’t his fault.
The chip adds more security to your card and is no doubt stopping more debit card fraud and account take overs than cards without, but it isn’t failsafe. As long as people/organizations continue to spend their time, money and resources trying to beat the system and steal money this sort of thing will happen. Years ago you were able to read debit cards with a VHS player and some advanced computer knowledge.
….and finally,
Would you rather deal with changing your pin number when it is flagged as being used somewhere questionable or the lengthy and time consuming process that goes along with debit card fraud? Highlights include, your accounts potentially be frozen, having no access to your money during the course of the criminal investigation, potentially having to prove it was actually fraud.
devil_girl
“The bank will not tell you to go to an ATM within two hours”
Yes we will.
I’ve never heard of a case where a person was given a time limit and told to go to an ATM rather than providing their personal information over the phone or in person. Especially when skimming occurred where a persons information was stolen due to swiping a card in a public terminal.
Honestly I think you’d have to be an idiot to swipe your card because a voice on the phone just told you “Your information was stolen because you swiped your card…now go swipe your card again.”
My mom and roommate both work for the banks as well. My mom is a teller and my roommate also answers calls. Perhaps the rules at your bank differ from the two they work for.
True dat devil_girl, I also work for bank and know that if any fraud is suspected, they will simply cancel your card and you’ll then have to go into a branch to get a new one.
If you suspect bank fraud, or recieve a call or email from your bank claiming the same, hang-up!, ignore it, and get out the phone book asap.
Look up the number of your closest bank branch and call them, or use the number on the back of your bank card, or even better go in person. I would bet they will tell you no, you arent a victim of fraud, you just avoided it.
Always turn the contact route around – from you to them, to confirm status.
A good blast of an airhorn will clear your phone line. Quite quickly, I might add.
Can’t imagine being called and told to go to an ATM within two hours. That’s ridiculous. Scam!
As for being able to change your PIN at an ATM. Yes, you can. Maybe, not all banks have the ability, but I know mine does. I’ve used the feature.
Wish I knew which bank nerdlinger works for.I’d stay away from it. They sound like the scammers.
First – the bank WILL call you and tell you these sorts of things – the red flag for a scam is if they ask you for info, that doesn’t sound like it happened here.
As for where the skim happened, they don’t necessarily know, and if they do, well, they’re usually cooperating with a police investigation and don’t want to compromise it. Quite often skims happen at businesses where the owners are totally unaware, and it’s not really fair for a bank to sully a reputation of a business owner like that.
As for chips – they prevent the most common type of skimming, which is magnetic stripe copying. It’s not a perfect solution yet because we haven’t gone totally to Chip & PIN machines, but in the next couple of years it should be completely converted.
I’m the OP and this was no scam. I just told the person who caleld that I was busy and woudl call them back. So I called back at the 1-800 number on my bank card and they verfied my identity and told me the same story. My card use had been limited (i.e. I couldnt use it) and I had to go to a teller machine to change my pin… with a “virtually presidential” bank – this is the norm – they do a certain setup where you call them and change your pin within two hours at one of their or their partner banks ATM – for a measure of security I assume. It just pisses me off that they woudln’t tell me where it happened. I have a suspicion but can’t confirm anything, but I would still like to know.
This is why I always carry cash…that way if anyone is trying to take my money I can at least try and do something about it :D! And I hate using debit. My friend uses it for absolutely everything; a lot of the time for things under $10, most times less than $5 and then is ALWAYS bugging me for cash and he’ll “pay me back later”. No sir, I did not go to the bank and take out money so you could have it all.
Well it is 2010 and plastic is an accepted form of payment. Atleast if you get money stolen from your bank account you’re usually covered for it through the bank. If you get that cash stolen by the ever present swarmers, then you’re SOL.
I am all for debit card use. It allows me to track my spending, budget, lowers teh risk of carrying cash and that god forsaken ten pounds of coin (just waiting for 5’s to be replaced by coins). And the coin – thats another story in itself – debit cards dont jingle in earshot of hobo’s asking for a handout… I digress…
when the hobo’s start carrying the debit at your door machines,
I’m fucking outta here.
And here I thought the OB was talking about a bank and not a bunch of wannabe ATMs. When I get ticked off I want to blast a real life manager not some anonymous voice over the phone.
I always follow instructions from Prince Abba Dabba Bunga ALWAYS from Nigeria who solicits my help in getting bazillions of $$ out of his wonderfully honest country and thereby gaining his undying gratitude and a 25% commission.
we get a few of those everyday at the shop they’re good for a larf
Someone skimmed my card, they just deactivated it. It was fun paying for a meal and my debit card didn’t work.