New way of Stealing

Be sure to read Scene 3. Quite interesting. This is a new one. People sure stay busy

trying to cheat us, don't they?

SCENE 1.

A friend went to the local gym and placed his belongings

in the locker. After the workout and a shower, he came out,

saw the locker open, and thought to himself, 'Funny,

I thought I locked the locker..

Hmm, 'He dressed and just flipped the wallet to make

sure all was in order.

Everything looked okay - all cards were in place...

A few weeks later his credit card bill came -

a whooping bill of $14,000!

He called the credit card company and started

yelling at them, saying that he did not make

the transactions.

Customer care personnel verified that

there was no Mistake in the system and asked

if his card had been stolen..

'No,' he said, but then took out his

wallet, pulled out the credit card, and yep -

you guessed it - a switch had been made.

An expired similar credit card from

the same bank was in the wallet.

The thief broke into his locker at the gym

and switched cards.

Verdict: The credit card issuer said since

he did not report the card missing earlier,

he would have to pay the amount owed

to them.

How much did he have to pay for items

he did not buy?

$9,000! Why were there no calls made to

verify the amount swiped?

Small amounts rarely trigger a 'warning bell'

with some credit card companies.

It just so happens that all the small amounts

added up to big one!

============================

SCENE 2.

A man at a local restaurant paid for his meal

with his credit card.

The bill for the meal came, he signed it and

the waitress folded the receipt and passed the

credit card along.

Usually, he would just take it and place it in his

wallet or pocket. Funny enough, though, he

actually took a look at the card and, lo and

behold, it was the expired card of another person.

He called the waitress and she looked perplexed.

She took it back, apologized, and hurried back to

the counter under the watchful eye of the man.

All the waitress did while walking to the counter

was wave the wrong expired card to the counter

cashier, and the counter cashier immediately

looked down and took out the real card.

No exchange of words --- nothing! She took

it and came back to the man with an apology..

Verdict:

Make sure the credit cards in your wallet are yours.

Check the name on the card every time you

sign for something and/or the card is taken

away for even a short period of time.

Many people just take back the credit card without

even looking at it, 'assuming' that it has to be theirs.

FOR YOUR OWN SAKE, DEVELOP THE HABIT

OF CHECKING YOUR CREDIT CARD EACH TIME

IT IS RETURNED TO YOU AFTER A TRANSACTION!

==========================

SCENE 3:

Yesterday I went into a pizza restaurant to

pick up an order that I had called in.

I paid by using my Visa Check Card which, of

course, is linked directly to my checking

account.

The young man behind the counter took my

card, swiped it, then laid it on the counter as

he waited for the approval, which is pretty

standard procedure..

While he waited, he picked up his cell phone

and started dialing.

I noticed the phone because it is the same

model I have, but nothing seemed out of the

ordinary. ? Then I heard a click that sounded

like my phone sounds when I take a picture.

He then gave me back my card but kept the

phone in his hand as if he was still pressing

buttons.

Meanwhile, I'm thinking: I wonder what he

is taking a picture of, oblivious to what was

really going on.

It then dawned on me: the only thing there

was my credit card, so now I'm paying close

attention to what he is doing..

He set his phone on the counter, leaving it

open.

About five seconds later, I heard the chime

that tells you that the picture has been saved.

Now I'm standing there struggling with the

fact that this boy just took a picture of my credit card.

Yes, he played it off well, because had we not

had the same kind of phone, I probably would

never have known what happened.

Needless to say, I immediately cancelled

that card as I was walking out of the pizza

parlor..

All I am saying is, be aware of your

surroundings at all times.

Whenever you are using your credit card

take caution and don't be careless.

Notice who is standing near you and what

they are doing when you use your card.

Be aware of phones, because many have a

camera phone these days.