Fraud Charges 2nd Time This Year. !!!! Retailers get your **** together!!!

[martinc]

Same,found myself on several wait lists and suddenly realised...wth am I doing...(cancelled my spots everywhere)I don't need to collect dozens of those things...sold my GG collection,gave away a few things,threw away others and settled.

Havent bought anything over $15 except juice for like over a year....bliss is that.

 

[ImThatGuy]

...check your own computers/tablet/medium for spyware/malware/keyloggers, etc...

It's easy to point fingers...

 

[Susaz]

Get a rechargeable card, and charge it with the amount you need for a certain transaction. True, it's not really credit, but it helps to curb spending and fraud. They can't charge you if you don't have any money on it.

 

[Tila]

ecigexpress got me twice in less than a month. On March 31 I made a purchase with them and then on April 17 I had a charge I did not recognize show up on my account. I called the bank about it and it was a Point of Sale card swipe purchase from across the country. My card was immediately deactivated. I received my new card and on April 28 I made another purchase from them using the new card. On May 8 the bank was calling me asking if I was trying to make a purchase for $300+ in the UK. Of course not. The card was declined and here I am again waiting for a new card. In both cases, I was not out any $$$. It is just the inconvenience of it. Needless to say I will not be purchasing anything else from eCigExpress.

For the record, there were no other on-line purchases made with the new card before this happened the second time. I used my husband's card to make a purchase from another vendor at the same time as a control. And, someone suggested my computer may have a virus. The second time, I made the purchase from my work computer. No, it is eCigExpress or one of their employees.

 

[patkin]

I must say that the odds on happening to select two two processing centers in a row, at least one being "secure like a bank," and considering the number of them there are, that get hacked in such a short amount of time smacks of an inside job instead of a PC at all. Well, that is if they did change centers. Who knows? They might have just thought their site wasn't secure and tightened it up. But, still, were I the owner I would sure want to know about this development so I could get a handle on just what's going on in my company.

 

[aikanae1]

How is it not suppliers fault? If I'm ordering something from them and they run a business its their duty to make sure their customers are well taken care of which includes securing their transactions etc. Weather it being their shopping cart of credit card processor. They should do research to make sure that companies they are doing business with are legit. Its like playing a Russian roulette every time you order something.

I don't think it matters whose fault it is - if enough people get spooked about buying online, then all vendors suffer. The whole community suffers.

 

[aikanae1]

You start building credit as soon as trade lines (accounts) start to appear on your credit report and, according to Nichole Mustard, vice president of strategy for CreditKarma, that generally happens once a person becomes a primary account holder for a line of credit, be it a credit card, auto loan, etc., regardless of his or her age.

I was referring to credit and not credit cards...

Your right. For decades identity thieves have targeted underage minors because they would be the ones least likely to notice it for years. Back in the 70's it was easy to use a childs identity and apply for a social security number (any age) and use for 10+ years before anyone was wiser. This is not a new tactic.

 

[Crocky]

Fraud charges Got me today.....and took everything I had with the exception of some change! Got bills being deducted this week, so a visit to the bank first thing in the am is in order. My bank actually called me.

And the worst part is it happen today of all days....my birthday

Is using a credit card instead of bank vp card any safer?

 

[Crocky]

By the way, they tried for just over 5k but only got away with $1490 because the other charges were denied obviously as I had no more money to take .

I have no idea what purchase this happen from and at this point it does not matter. I don't blame the vendor I blame myself.....never ever use a debit card for online purchases. Every vendor i have recently purchased form have been reputable vendors, i think they do what they can with the choices they are offered as far as processors/security when it comes to sales in this industry. It seems that no matter how much a vendor tries to ensure security there is always a scumbag that has the ability to make a living off of someone else's money!! I will tell you this though. It won't happen again! I will get a prepaid or secure card from my bank. Screw me once, shame on you, screw me twice, shame on me!

 

[aikanae1]

By the way, they tried for just over 5k but only got away with $1490 because the other charges were denied obviously as I had no more money to take .

I have no idea what purchase this happen from and at this point it does not matter. I don't blame the vendor I blame myself.....never ever use a debit card for online purchases. Every vendor i have recently purchased form have been reputable vendors, i think they do what they can with the choices they are offered as far as processors/security when it comes to sales in this industry. It seems that no matter how much a vendor tries to ensure security there is always a scumbag that has the ability to make a living off of someone else's money!! I will tell you this though. It won't happen again! I will get a prepaid or secure card from my bank. Screw me once, shame on you, screw me twice, shame on me!

Never use a debit card. You might want to inquire about a virtual shopping card that is funded for online only. I hear some banks are offerring it now. I've seen reports from at least 3 other vendors and by the scope, I think it's not site specific but a problem with a web host, gateway or data processing center. Sometimes there's no way to know. But this has been promblematic enough that I think many people are wary of shopping online and that hurts the whole community. Most people don't have access to a good b&m store yet. What a lousy thing to happen.

 

[retrox]

Wow, Johnson Creek?! That about brings us to DEFCON 1, folks. Did you notify JC of the phishing attempt, SpinfuelRocks? I'm sure that's something they'd want to know about.

Does anyone suspect there might be a carding community somewhere that's zeroed in on the ecig industry as the latest easy target? It seems plausible considering that the possibility of anyone's government stepping in to curb widespread internet crimes against ecig retailers is practically nil.

Shall we blame Big Tobacco now? Or later?

 

[MrStik]

I haven't checked this thread for a while. So to those who started out saying that this thread was unnecessary, what are they saying now? It looks like to me that it is somewhere in the point of contacts at the vendor side and after that is the issue. It is hard to actually believe that every single member who was hit with fraud had a compromised computer and/or visited common B&M locations, or shopped online at any other common vendors outside of Vaping. This should be a wakeup call to all the vendors to keep our information safe, or find other vendors they use to keep our information safe. Yes their business will hurt from this. Their bottomlines will be affected with more expenses from purchasing more security. But all that is a small price to pay to still be in business.

In a world where information goes viral in a matter of seconds, businesses need to leverage the information they find about themselves online whether it is good or bad. Bad and negative ones should grab their attention as soon as possible so they can fix anything broken within their business, and that includes the possibility of being hacked and attacked.

Those who posted up information in here about being victims are doing so because they love the vaping community by showing concern and warning other consumers of potential risks and alerting vendors that they are possibly compromised so they can tighten security, and these members should be commended. The vendors that stepped up to heighten their security in light of the situation should be commended as well. A community that works together to combat these issues will grow and strive through mutual respect.

 

[Uma]

I interrupt my adamant thoughts for a brief newscast to self. "Hey dummy! Your hubby used that card a few weeks ago to fill the propane tank".
My apologies to everyone for being so positively sure I had only used the card once (prepaid card). Well, actually I did only use it the once! But hubby used it once too which I had forgotten about.

 

[Caridwen]

I interrupt my adamant thoughts for a brief newscast to self. "Hey dummy! Your hubby used that card a few weeks ago to fill the propane tank".
My apologies to everyone for being so positively sure I had only used the card once (prepaid card). Well, actually I did only use it the once! But hubby used it once too which I had forgotten about.

I know two people this happened to within the last two weeks that don't vape.

 

[J.R. Bob Dobbs]

if you realize you can use a prepaid card and don't, then why are you complaining you got nailed? Thats like saying "well i know how to use a condom but did not and now she is pregnant."

reading all the threads on ecf and knowing todays world of cc fraud running rampant if you do not take steps to protect yourself it is your own fault. Sorry for the harshness but seriously. if you do not actively protect yourself you have no reason to complain because it is only a matter of time before you get hit.


here is a very simple trick i have employed and it has worked wonders.

Start signing your name upside down on cc receipts.

and/ or

add something innocuous to your signature, over top of your signature after you sign it. Something like a smiley face, a star or a big circle ...you get the idea. By doing this you develop a pattern of signatures with your CC company. Should someone get ahold of your wallet they have your licence and signature. If they copy that and you have developed the pattern, fraud is easily proven.

with online stuff, get a separate bank account(beyond what you use for paying bills and get direct deposit into) or use prepaid cards. the small cost is well worth not having to fight fraud charges.

 

[supermarket]

if you realize you can use a prepaid card and don't, then why are you complaining you got nailed? Thats like saying "well i know how to use a condom but did not and now she is pregnant."

reading all the threads on ecf and knowing todays world of cc fraud running rampant if you do not take steps to protect yourself it is your own fault. Sorry for the harshness but seriously. if you do not actively protect yourself you have no reason to complain because it is only a matter of time before you get hit.


here is a very simple trick i have employed and it has worked wonders.

Start signing your name upside down on cc receipts.

and/ or

add something innocuous to your signature, over top of your signature after you sign it. Something like a smiley face, a star or a big circle ...you get the idea. By doing this you develop a pattern of signatures with your CC company. Should someone get ahold of your wallet they have your licence and signature. If they copy that and you have developed the pattern, fraud is easily proven.

with online stuff, get a separate bank account(beyond what you use for paying bills and get direct deposit into) or use prepaid cards. the small cost is well worth not having to fight fraud charges.

I don't agree with your argument.

A great majority of people use actual credit cards, even debit cards, when shopping online. Very, VERY few people use prepaid cards, compared to those who use credit cards.

That by itself doesn't mean it is OKAY.....but add to the fact that vendors ACCEPT credit cards, for a REASON. If it was generally considered BAD PRACTICE, and UNSAFE to use credit cards online....then vendors, not just vape vendors, but all vendors would stop taking credit cards.

I've been using credit cards online for about 10 years, several times a WEEK. That is thousands upon thousands of transactions, without any problem. I know hundreds of friends who do the same, no problem.

Of course, fraud can happen anywhere. No one is saying it can't......but when it hits the vaping community at such astounding rates.....there is a PROBLEM. And the problem ISNT with the buyer.....it is with the vendors and their credit card processing companies.

 

[supermarket]

Also, what JR Bob said is true, and I agree with all of it, except for it being peoples fault for using credit cards online. The truth is, using your CC online IS supposed to be, and usually IS generally safe. Problems CAN and DO happen, but the majority of people have no problems with their transactions.

What OTHERS, myself included have noticed, is there is someone/a group of people specifically targetting the vape vendors and/or the CC processors they use. This ISNT normal....and the fact we have to take extra precautions just to avoid getting our CC info stolen, should raise alarms.

 

[areinike]

I just had this happen to me. Just this morning. Only two merchants I've given my credit card number to in the last week. Perfumers Apprentice and eCigExpress. I'd hate to think it's PA and since the OP mentioned eCigExpress as well, maybe we're on to something here. Bassards tried to order a Sony Ultrabook from Newegg.com this morning. I noticed it like 20 minutes later when I went to my bank statement. Called Newegg, they looked up the order and canceled it. I, in turn, deactivated my card. I'll know better next time, if they don't take PayPal direct, they're not getting my business.

 

[uzer]

I only use one online ecig vendor, ecigexpress.com. Not to say that they are the source of my fraud, but I've been hit three months in a row now, and each time I narrowed the number of places my card was used. Each of those cards were less than 3 weeks old when I used them. I read on here that ecigexpress has done extensive testing and found no problems. Nonetheless they have replaced their security system and switched processors. I'm sure there's more to the story, and I wish someone would come forward... If it's the processing company, then they should be fingered.

I filed a report with the FTC. Even though they will not investigate individual incidents, they can decide to investigate if they see a pattern. If enough people file a report, they will get to the bottom of it.

Here is the link to the FTC:

https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov

 

[areinike]

Good job man. I just submitted a complaint. Get enough people and maybe they'll see what's going on. I was just glad I was able to contact NewEgg within minutes and have them cancel the order. Crazy, man.