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[jaydub]

One of my cars does this automatically after you've driven a few feet.  Occasionally this coincides with a passerby, which can make me feel awkward - "Sorry, its the car!  I didn't find your tattoo'd, bandanna wearing, saggy #####'d self threatening!"

[Arachno-capitalist]

Pedro lost his credit card recently, and when we realized it had been mislaid we went online and checked the statement.  We saw that someone had run up about $150 worth of charges, and at first I was angry, but then I saw that they were all for Burger King gift certificates, and then I was just sad for the thief. 

No big deal for us, we'll get it back and all, but somebody out there is desperate and hungry. 

Only $150? What a wuss. My mom's credit card thief did it up right, all literally buying diamonds and liquor until it hit the credit limit.

[linnea]

Yeah, you always gotta lock the car doors when you're driving. Even if it doesn't have power locks and you have to lean all the way over and lock them. Why make it easy for someone to carjack you? Fuck, if they're gonna take me out they're gonna have to bust a window to do it.

[side_show]

Actually, the common behavior of credit card fraud for those "in the know" is to start with a process called "testing" to see if the card has been blocked.  This is done by making small purchases that will not set off the automatic, computerized block that a purchase outside of one's normal behavior would.  If testing is successful, the fraudster will move on to attempt larger purchases.  A pro would never go and make a large purchase as their first charge on a stolen card, as places where you can throw down major cheddar are also places where the employee actually knows what to do if the card has already been reported stolen.

Common places to perform a test purchase include cab fair, fast food joints and gas station purchases.  It's a fairly recognizable pattern: fast food joint, major purchase, gas station, major purchase... all within a short time frame.  If the cardholder doesn't usually also spend in this manner, many systems will place a temporary block on a card when a pattern like this appears.  I worked for such a card.  I'd get the occasional annoyed cardholder calling who'd gone for lunch before buying a TV or something, but after I verified their identity and explained that we had "noticed" spending behavior outside the way they usually used the card they were mostly appreciative.

[jay-ell]

Yeah, the guy who got our Visa card got a cheeseburger or something, then had five transactions for $20 each the same day.  Pedro is pretty sure he actually lost the card in a Burger King.  And he didn't realize he'd lost it for about a week.  And the card was nowhere near maxed out, even after the guy stopped using it.  Pretty much, he got something to eat, provided for a few week's worth of meals, and then ditched the card. 

When Pedro's debit card number was stolen, it was like smells described.  Usually the bank calls us if they see "unusual" spending patterns, and we always felt safe with that.  But in that case, Pedro still had the physical card, and the thief had apparently applied the information to a different card with someone else's name on it.  They were using it to buy big-ticket stuff in California -- five or six hundred at a go -- and also spent considerable amounts at gas stations and restaurants.  The worst part is that we were on vacation at  the time, so the bank couldn't get in touch with us, and we had to sort out the California transactions from all the ones we'd made on the two-day drive to Toledo, Ohio.  (Lots of gas stations and restaurants, in other words.)  But they had us cleaned out in about 24 hours, and then some. 

That was traumatic.  We got it all back, but I felt as violated as if someone had broken into my car.  (We've had that happen, too -- three times.)