Bank Card Fraud (ebay, uber, other) Suddenly Blamed On Me - HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?

[whyohwhyme]

Hi, around a month ago I logged into my primary bank account and noticed a bunch of fraudulent transactions had been made on my account such as multiple ebay purchases, uber eats orders, etc. These transaction where pending so they where definitely within the last hour or so, so I quickly got on the phone to block my card. All of these transaction where showing as foreign countries such as the Netherlands, Luxenbourg etc.

 

My card was now blocked however the fraud department was closed so I called back to file a report the following day.

Everything went smoothly and they assured me the money would be returned.

A few days later, as they promised, they had put the money back into my account and had a new card sent out to me.

I thanked them and though nothing more of it. This was a month ago.

 

A few hours ago I receive an email from the fraud department saying that they are reversing the charge and billing me for it because they have apparently discovered that it was infact me who made those transactions!!!!

 

I combed through the paperwork they attached to the email and SURE ENOUGH it is showing my HOME ADDRESS as the delivery address for the ebay items!!! HOW IS THIS EVEN POSSIBLE?!

Apparently I ordered a bunch of expensive headphones, one delivered by Royal Mail and the other by DHL!

I've just tried calling the fraud department but they are closed.

 

In the mean time, how the hell could this of happened?

How did someone, somehow get a hold of my CARD DETAILS and my HOME DETAILS at the same time?!

Especially on a card that I only use for limited things?

THIS MAKES NO SENSE!

Supposedly it was someone who lives in my building who received my mail by accident, that way, they got my home address.

BUT HOW THE HELL DID THEY GET A HOLD OF MY CARD NUMBER?

THIS IS WHAT IS BAFFLING ME!

 

For the record, I use this card only to receive my wages, I have never in the 3 years of owning it used it for any online purchases.

I live in a flat, I live ALONE, my card has always been in my wallet, I've never misplaced it, nor has anything else from my wallet gone missing such as my drivers license, that could have given away my address!

 

Please help me guys, I am totally lost!

I am running low on cash, I haven't worked in 3 weeks due to work drying up and still awaiting payment for work I carried out back in December.

And now THIS!

 

All the help I can get is really appreciated, thanks!

[dx100uk]

is this card linked to your paypal account if you have one?

 

8 minutes ago, whyohwhyme said:

All of these transaction where showing as foreign countries such as the Netherlands, Luxenbourg etc.

 

expand the above further, if things were delivered to your address, how can they have been ordered ? is that what you mean by someone abroad. 

[whyohwhyme]

Thanks for the reply.

On my app statement, or under my recent transactions, it was showing Ebay Luxenbourg, Uber Netherlands etc.

I just assumed the card details had been swiped some how and had been used abroad.

 

I mentioned this to the fraud department over the phone and they said "yes, I can see that." So just assumed the above.

 

I did google this back then and I remember this also being the place where these companies hold their headquarters so it could just be the companies main location and not where the actual transactions took place.

 

 

[dx100uk]

ok thank you.

so you dont have an paypal account yourself that this card is a payment method too?

as this is the usual source of how card details are harvested.

 

dx

 

[whyohwhyme]

Nope, nothing like that.

This card was set up for the sole purpose of receiving wages, In an ironic effort to avoid fraud.

This is where I get confused real quick.

 

Yes, I've given out my account number and sort code along with my address for income purposes, but this is normal. My card details have always remained with me, period!

 

All of my direct debits, online purchases, hell even rent payments are made using my second debit card.

I transfer money from my wages card to my second card from time to time using the mobile app. That is it.

 

I've been pondering this for hours now,

how this could have happened and I can't get my head around it.

 

If the delivery address was mine, then where is the package?

I didn't get a knock at the door, nothing.

 

Also, the most interesting part is, the name of the recipient is NOT ME.

Its some random name I can't even pronounce.

 

The fact that my long card number was used is what is baffling me, there is no explanation for this.

[dx100uk]

yes thanks great info.

as you say it needs thinking about and narrowing down.

 

please bear with us.

some of my following questions, as things progress might seem

stupid, misguided, already investigated, totally irrelevant,  or even insulting and annoying...

but i can assure you, as you probably will understand are not meant in anyway to be so..

but need asking..

 

1st where has this idea come from...

 

1 hour ago, whyohwhyme said:

Supposedly it was someone who lives in my building who received my mail by accident

 

guess work or something more...

 

1 hour ago, whyohwhyme said:

uber eats orders, etc

as for the lets say 'almost instant' delivery eg items to an address like the uber eats and was there more please re ETC,

it's been known for people that do card fraud and then  hang around outside to collect them in their own car when they arrive as they know they will be 'soon'.

 

1 hour ago, whyohwhyme said:

Apparently I ordered a bunch of expensive headphones, one delivered by Royal Mail and the other by DHL!

these however as a tad more difficult for the above food scam to judge when delivery happens..

 

ok some things to answer 

and somethings to think about..

 

dx

 

 

[whyohwhyme]

Thanks DX, ask anything you must, I won't mind at all. This has completely stomped me and I need all the ammo i can get tomorrow when talking with the bank.

 

1) Just guess work, I mean I get odd junk mail from time to time for others in the building. I just put it back in their post box. Even this makes no sense... Would the bank stupidly some how include card details in a letter? I doubt it.

 

2) You have a point regarding uber eats, a friend of mine orders regularly and I could see the driver live in the app which was cool I suppose.

 

3) Is there anyway to get a hold of DHL or Royal Mail and ask for photo evidence? If they took a picture of the front of the building, then this is a problem. If they took a picture of the exact flat, then this could work to figure out if someone inside the building did this. (don't forget, you can track delivery drivers too. I had a DPD parcel ages ago and could see that he was within 15 minutes away. So if the driver handed the parcel over at the main entrance, then this is useless to us.)

 

Again, the most confusing part of this is, the card details, AND my home address. Its bizzare. If the bank had provided the details to me that day, or a few days after, I could have grabbed the tracking number and waited for the parcel, just to see who turns up!

 

EDIT:

 

A friend of mine a few years ago had her details stolen and a bunch of iPhones made it to her home address. The person was actually WAITING outside for the parcels when her partner came home just as the delivery driver arrived, when the person waiting to sign for the parcels ran off. I'm not sure how much is relevant to be honest, seen as she used her card details a hundred times online, I on the other hand, have not.

 

If I had used my details online, or in a shady place even once, I can understand that this is what may have happened. But this is not the case, and this is what is bugging me majorly!

 

Supposedly someone walked past me and used a device to steal my card details from my wallet (could happen) how in the hell did they also get a hold of my home address? That's where that theory falls apart for me and baffles me even more.

 

(just a note regarding the forum, all my previous posts seem to scramble up a little bit. I'm not sure why. - The formatting is all over the place, even though that is not how I posted them. Sorry if it looks messy, I tried to edit them but its too late.)

 

Thanks!

[dx100uk]

dont worry about the formatting it looks fine.

just highlights things of importance better.

 

well it can't be home grown as the 'goods' would have been obvious if it was a family member.

 

Swiping as you walk by someone is a possibility (RFID DEvices) then follow you home to find address.

or its works employee fraud that has access to your card details on the works system that pays you.

 

as you've explained but just to check, this card is not on any payment  apps on your mobile phone.

 

how long has this card existed against this bank account 

 

 

 

 

[whyohwhyme]

1) Swiping my card details is clearly the only way the details where stolen, however I find the following me home theory improbable as I work night shift so I'm usually driving home alone with no one else around.

 

2) The work situation also seems improbable. How would they have my card details? (again, different from my account number and sort code.) Plus, I drive independently for a living so I don't run into anyone.

 

3) Card details are definitely not hooked onto any payment system.

 

4) The card has existed for exactly 3 years. It was due to expire last month, but a new card was issued due to the fraud.

 

Thanks!

 

[dx100uk]

so you carry this 'isolated' around in your wallet, why if you don't ever need too? that opens you upto things you have purposefully protected against happening...

 

in your wallet are there details of your address too? go look now i bet there is...

this opens you upto to a quick wallet look see with a mobile that takes less than 30 secs to photograph things.....

 

from there comes 2 theories to explore:

 

1. getting your card and address details must of happened recently, hence why it only just happened..

 

2, it happened a while ago , details typically passed on later for a fee. typically the scammers do one transaction of low value or  something almost unnoticeable (check recent statements with a fine toothed comb) to see if the card still works, then goto town on it..

 

are all the fraudulent uses within a set period or is one markedly some time before the others?

[whyohwhyme]

95% of the time  I don't carry it with me, I leave it at home always (as intended.)  The odd time where I am going on a long job, usually an overnighter, I take it with me as a backup just incase anything happens, my main card not working at a fuel station, etc, I know its silly but it would be even sillier travelling with only one payment method (bad experiences in the past.)

 

My wallet is a slotted one, as in, you have to slide the cards in and out, my drivers license is buried in the back, unless you pick it out, no info could have been seen.

 

I checked through the online statement just now, aside from the usual transfers and payments in, there is nothing out of the ordinary.

 

All of the transactions happened at the same time, around 8pm. Both Uber and Ebay, all transactions where pending (which means it was after banking hours) and hadn't cleared yet. I did tell the lost and stolen department this but they told me that's not their department and transactions can only be halted by another department who are closed now (how useful of them!)

 

Still baffled.

 

 

[whyohwhyme]

Odd thought... Do new drivers licenses have RFID in them? If so, there is the first possibility.

 

Secondly, and as bizarre as it sounds, do bank cards store home addresses? (I'm sure they don't but who knows - I'm taking a swing at every possibility here.)

Edited February 4, 2021 by whyohwhyme

[theberengersniper]

To address your point about where the packages are and why you haven't received them, I believe this to be an increasingly common way of going about theft/fraud.

 

The fraudster makes a purchase using your card details and enters your address as the delivery address, thereby reducing or eliminating the chance of the transaction being flagged as unusual or potentially fraudulent. The fraudster then tracks the package post-purchase but pre-delivery and intercepts it before the delivery driver rings your door.

 

With a lot of deliveries now you can actually track the delivery driver street-by-street as they're making their round. It would therefore be possible to either intercept the driver outside your home, or even on a street near you.

 

You can imagine the scenario: "hello mate, I'm Mr X, I noticed you're heading to my place next but I'm about to go out. Any chance I could have my parcel now?". Queue some semi-convincing fake ID and Bob's your uncle, parcel intercepted.

[whyohwhyme]

Thanks,  I'm guessing this is how they did it, its just how they lifted my home details too is strange. Anyway, I will be calling them up in a minute to give them an earache however, any suggestions on how to go about this?

 

Thanks!

Edited February 4, 2021 by whyohwhyme

[dx100uk]

any news?

 

dx

[whyohwhyme]

hi DX,

 

I just got off the phone with them now. They said as the fraud case is now closed, they have created a complaint and escalated it to another department who will be in touch with me in a few day to confirm they have received the complaint, however, it may take upto 30 days to resolve. I explained everything from start to finish, all the key points mentioned. Fingers crossed I suppose.

 

They said they can not reinstate the money until the case is resolved, however, no charges will be applied for being in the minuses.

 

I will keep you guys posted. Thanks!

[45002]

Has your mobile phone got adequate internet security for antivirus and malware ?

 

Your mobile could be vulnerable to malicious software and steal All your details

 

It does happen, any device that connects to the internet is vulnerable to online threats, and that includes your smartphone or  tablet.

Using UN secure Wi-Fi could be another way to steal your details that way.

 

Free and paid for here   http://tiny.cc/882etz

 

 

Edited February 5, 2021 by 45002
url as ever

[whyohwhyme]

Hey,

 

I got a response from the bank.

they are saying they stand by their decision, and that they don't care whether or not the recipient name was not mine, nor do they care that the other 3 out of the 5 payments where classed as fraudulent. They gave me a link to the ombudsman and said that's that.

 

I'm extremely disappointed with them with the way they have handled this.

I've been an account holder for 3 years, I pay a monthly fee every month since opening, and this is how they treat customers. Essentially accusing me of fraud for a lousy £200.

 

I will be changing banks after this is sorted out, I feel disgusted to be honest.

 

Any guidance is appreciated.

 

Thanks!