Ask HN: I think I was just scammed for my card/bank details. What should I do?

Craziest card fraud experience ever.

My citibank debit card was declined for a mailchimp payment which most probably was because I was using it in Denmark on vacation for some transaction so they put a temp hold. No biggie. I call the number (i think) to their support but accidentally do 8007880022 instead of 8007880002. Furthermore i call the 0002 is a TTY so not even the actual number I was supposed to call even if I had done it correctly.

Anyway I get put through to a guy who claims to be for citibank and ask me to first confirm all my information. When I am done with that he asks me to confirm for their voice recognition system both with address, name, email etc and spelling it out too. I am annoyed but I am no suspiccious at all.

Then he gives me a confirmation code and phone number which he claims I should call 800 373 3411.

I do that but end up with some love hotline or something and when I call back that other number (the 0022) it's a different company suddenly.

Now I am confused and I call up citibank and tries to explain this too them. First they claim the number exist and that its fine, then she says its not correct but lifts the ban without actually cancelling the card.

I then have to call fraud department who still don't seem to understand what just happened and don't seem to care that this elaborate things is going on.

I insist that they cancel my card but realize that someone how have my voice spelling out address and say OK and other things (he was very specific that the system needed OK not just Sure)

I fell pretty stupid right now that I didn't recognize this but even more confused about what went wrong and what they can misuse that for and most importantly what to do about it.

12 points | by ThomPete 1705 days ago

5 comments

  • davismwfl 1705 days ago
    Don't beat yourself up over this. When we get busy and distracted we all make simple mistakes that can be very much a pain or costly.

    A couple of things I think you should do, put a fraud alert on your credit file with the credit agencies, or get something like lifelock if you don't already have it. That will alert you if anyone tries to open new accounts using your credit profile. Also make sure you watch all your credit cards and financial statements for the next 3-6 months pretty closely, raise any issues fast don't wait. You might also want to change all the passcodes/passwords/pins you use on them for just that extra little level of security.

    We all make mistakes, it sucks, it is embarrassing sometimes, but you aren't alone.

  • gatherhunterer 1705 days ago
    Using someone else's card is a pretty stupid crime, most of the time it won't even work if you try to do so from another country. A less stupid crime is using some else's identity. A scammer is probably more inclined to use your information to open other accounts. They don't want your money, they want your credit.

    Talk to your bank about freezing your credit (the credit agencies do this but a bank should help) and they will probably tell you to wait until there is fraudulent activity. With the inadequacy of digital privacy, nearly everyone's identity has been compromised and we will all have it stolen at some point, just know what to do when that day comes.

  • sn9 1705 days ago
    patio11 wrote this amazing piece that might help: https://www.kalzumeus.com/2017/09/09/identity-theft-credit-r...
  • quaquaqua1 1705 days ago
    If it's just your card and address and not SSN, call citibank's real number to get your card cancelled.

    If it's also SSN, consider and ID protection service until you can sort the problem out long term.

    • ThomPete 1705 days ago
      Yeah I did that. And I have ID protection service.
      • quaquaqua1 1705 days ago
        Phew :) Then thanks to the way our US system currently runs, I don't think there is much else to do? It's almost user unfriendly by design.
  • Nextgrid 1705 days ago
    Get a card from a decent & modern bank so no need to deal with similar bullshit ever. I heard Monzo is planning to launch in the US.