Mad Vapes - BEWARE! - Credit Card stolen for fraud immediately after my first order

[jackbox]

Just an aside. The thread linked below sounds very similar. In fact, the exact same issue. I wish the OP of that thread would mention the vendor in question to warn others.

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/general-e-smoking-discussion/112068-credit-card-fraud.html

 

[SCTony]

Thanks for the heads-up siampumpkin. I'll keep what happened to you in mind with future orders. Cheers.

 

[jdrewry]

To the OP:

It's unfortunate that you had to go through an experience dealing with fraudulent purchases made on your credit card, but the bottom line is, as long as you were able to get your funds reutrned, that's what matters. Bad-mouthing a company for their handling of this issue is subjective, unless there are a large number of similar circumstances with other customers. Yes, they could have handled you issue with a little more sensitivity, but, understand that their is no one approach, from all companies that offer online transactions, to responding to this situation.

Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, Best buy, SONY, Microsoft--all of these companies have had the misfortune of being on the receiving end of a complaint like you offer about Mad vapes. The companies listed have been involved in their share of accounts being hacked, and I can guarantee you, none of them handled the complaints in a similar fashion. Now, I've never purchased anything from Mad Vapes, so I can see both sides of this issue--those defending the company as one with which they never had a problem, and yours, in which you have had a very unpleasant incident occur. Most people who have gone through what you have won't order from that particular company again, which is understandable. Those who have had no problems with that company will continue doing business with that company, which is also understandable.

I sincerely hope that no one has to go through the experience of credit card fraud. Most people who do online purchasing take the precautions of protecting their banking information as best they can. If anything, a story like this may make people more cautious, which is a good thing As long as Mad Vapes was able to handle the situation in which your funds were returned, that should be the end of the matter. Whether you decide to continue to do business with them is, of course, your perogative. Understand, though, that just because you may not be able to convince a majority of posters here that they are a bad company does not make them irresponsible, either individually, or as a forum community.

 

[hairball]

To the OP...yes it's possible that your internet defenses have a leak and you got popped by a cyber criminal. It's also possible that madvapes has a less the reputable employee who helped himself/herself to your information. I'm not sure how madvapes has their encryption setup but with the way some people are these days, nothing is fireproof. Thank you for posting about this. You aren't the first person that this has happened too in the ecig world and I'm not talking about madvapes. Basically, someone's card was hi-jacked by an employee and the employee got caught...happened in the beginning of last year...damn I can't remember who the vendor was. Anyways, yes it can happen both ways. Please contact your bank and get it stopped and the charges reversed. Also, I'm not a big fan of their juice either except for the China juice...not the custom stuff either.

 

[Lacedolphin]

I posted on another part of the forum that I also had a issue and was slammed for posting it, and even other people were have the same issue with this company, though it was NOT a CC problem.

Some newer members posting and getting nasty responses makes me wonder if I want to continue being a member here. I don't think it's OK to be rude to anyone, especially of they disagree with you!

 

[Tburys]

Any employee anywhere could do this. Hopefully they get the bad guy out of their work!

 

[jackbox]

I posted on another part of the forum that I also had a issue and was slammed for posting it, and even other people were have the same issue with this company, though it was NOT a CC problem.

Some newer members posting and getting nasty responses makes me wonder if I want to continue being a member here. I don't think it's OK to be rude to anyone, especially of they disagree with you!

I agree with you whole heartily. It seems that some "ECF Veterans" take umbrage with new members posting their negative experience. Isn't this what this forum is all about, posting your experiences good and bad? He just could not post in the "Vendor experiences - negative" category yet because he had not reached the magic count of five posts yet. Does that and where he lives make him a pariah? I don't think so. So much for openly welcoming new members. It is sad you and others have been subjected to abuse for trying to do a solid to warn others of a potential problem. Responses such as seen here are what encourage most people to remain lurkers and refrain from posting. Thank you for being a ray of sunshine among ECF members.

 

[martinc]

I posted on another part of the forum that I also had a issue and was slammed for posting it, and even other people were have the same issue with this company, though it was NOT a CC problem.

Some newer members posting and getting nasty responses makes me wonder if I want to continue being a member here. I don't think it's OK to be rude to anyone, especially of they disagree with you!

What you mainly experienced is a bunch of users getting on the internet bandwagon...been surfing for over 12 yrs...dont take that too personal...some would normally stay quiet and move on but their need to express their opinions sometimes far outweight common sense

Write what you have to write and if it degenerates,unsub from your thread.

P.S.

I know,it in our nature to check and react!
The BS I just wrote goes along the same lines

 

[Odium]

I posted on another part of the forum that I also had a issue and was slammed for posting it, and even other people were have the same issue with this company, though it was NOT a CC problem.

Some newer members posting and getting nasty responses makes me wonder if I want to continue being a member here. I don't think it's OK to be rude to anyone, especially of they disagree with you!

Your actually better off here then any other vaping related forum... I don't think I'm allowed to post the name but the only other forum that has a decent member count has a whole lot of flame threads and the moderators are almost the worst offenders in some cases.

Here the moderators take care of most everything but you will still get the occasional headache, though this is the same all over the net... Gotta develop tough skin:

 

[dormouse]

I would be very surprised if Madvapes has a problem. People buy there all the time. I just bought from them last week and I've bought from them at least a dozen times. They have been around a long time compared to many of the other ecig vendors. However I never ever let any web store, ecig or other, store my credit card info online. The only places that get to keep my info are Paypal and Amazon.

And if you read that thread linked above, that person used Paypal for their online purchases and the vendors do not even get your credit card info at all with Paypal so the problem at that link was not vendors either. And I have used Paypal for over 10 years for over a hundred purchases per year and I trust Paypal so much that it is one of the two places I allow to keep my credit card info stored (and as well my bank info). So in the case of that thread above, they were also pointing at the person's computer or network as the source of the problem.

I would suspect either your own computer, or if you told some website in the past to remember your credit card info, or if you have used your card anywhere physical - and it doesn't have to be since the last credit card statement. In our area, thieves actually managed to put skimmers INSIDE gas pumps to steal the credit information. And I got my own information stolen when traveling at a gas station that did not take credit cards at the pump and I had to take my card inside to a person.

It's not beyond the realm of possibility that Madvapes got hacked but it's not the first possibility I would consider. HOWEVER you should contact Madvapes about it because there's always the chance they hired somebody new who is not trustworthy. But I don't even know if websites that use secure credit card processing ever get the credit card info themselves. In any case, you should tell them.

 

[jackbox]

Why was the other credit card thread referenced above deleted?

http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/general-e-smoking-discussion/112068-credit-card-fraud.html

Try it. It is gone. It was about 50 pages long.

 

[SCTony]

... I contacted MADVAPES customer service with a very nice email tellling them what happened and asking them to check their security procedures. No only did they not offer me an apology or express any concern for me at all, they replied with a curt response that I should call my credit card company and cancel the card. After that I have not heard from them....

This is what concerns me the most about this incident.

 

[suzybdone]

Siampumkin, welcome to the New Member Forum at ECF. I say this from both sides of my mouth. I have gotten great info from this board and have been horrified at the venom that can spew from some members. Just like any group, it is the diversity that keeps us rolling.

I would like to thank you for your original post. I am also a computer professional but have also had a similar CC problem happen to me. I don't think anyone is immune anymore. That being said, I also have never had any business with these vendors so I have no idea about problems that might exist. When someone has a problem and honestly reports that to the forum, it helps me make informed decisions. I personally care how I am treated by the customer service department of a company. You explained that you had handled the CC problem and were just giving the company a heads-up. I have always been taught that the customer is the basis of your business and should be treated as such. You weren't. End of story.

Good luck and begin to cultivate a bit of armor if you intend to post often on the board. There's the good, the bad, and the ugly and it seems you have met the full gamut in this thread. I will probably get tagged for this reply but what the heck - it makes life interesting.

 

[Sdh]

OP-Thanks for sharing your experience.

 

[martinc]

I don't think I'm allowed to post the name but the only other forum that has a decent member count has a whole lot of flame threads and the moderators are almost the worst offenders in some cases.

Ah yes,the other webboard that runs on 1993 software

 

[classwife]

Moving to Negative Reviews of Suppliers...New Members is not the place for this...Suppliers can not respond.

 

[FAAmecanic]

More than likely not an issue on Madvapes end my friend. I generally use the on screen keyboard (%SystemRoot%\system32\osk.exe) when entering any CC info. Using this tool rather than keystrokes makes it impossible for a keylogger to grab that information.

Was just going to say it sounds like the OP may have a keylogger virus. I have been hit by a keylogger (dont know how as Im .... about my AV software and Spyware...I run at least 3 AV progs and 3 Spyware) a few years ago. Cooks not only swiped my card number, but somehow got MY PIN number as they drained by account from a ATM in Canada, and I was living in South Carolina. Then my bank wanted to argue with me that I had to have made the withdraws myself because my pin number was used. Was quite comical when I showed them that at 10am a ATM withdraw was made in Quebec Canada, then at 10:05am a purchase was made at my local grocery store...lol

I now ONLY use a laptop that ONLY goes to websites where I pay my bills, and buy stuff from reputable vendors. This laptop goes no where else on the web.

 

[classwife]

Side note:


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