Home > Blogs > LaShawn Norden > Central Florida Real Estate~The Good, the Bad & The Ugly by LaShawn Norden, REALTOR

The One Call That Confirmed I Have Been Violated!

By LaShawn Norden

Real Estate Agent with Keller Williams Heritage Realty

October 13, 2008 06:31 AM

Knock on wood, I've never been a victim of credit card fraud or anything like it...until today.

About an hour ago, I received a call from Intelligent E Commerce, which is a company that does "people searches." The nice young girl who called said that she was calling to thank me for my recent "membership."

Since I am the only one with access to my business credit and debit cards and I knew that I had NOT joined such a company, I proceeded to nicely blast her with a ton of questions about when the account was opened, who opened it, how they charged it, etc...

After a few brief minutes, she acknolwedged that someone else must have used my debit card to start a membership. Thankfully, she canceled the account and reversed the charges.

Just after hanging up, I contacted my bank.

Wouldn't you know it, but since Saturday, this "identity thief" charged more than $200 on my debit card and to make matters worse, most of it was in the "adult entertainment" industry.

And so, I've spent the last hour filing a claim with my bank, calling all of the companies where charges were made and freaking out with the idea that someone has stolen my identity. I mean really, if they want my identity so bad, I'd happily hand over my debt for them to pay if they'd show their creepy little face!

Luckily, I do my business banking online so I was able to see all of the charges through today...just one more reason why it's smart to check your account daily to make sure nothing funny is going on.

Even though this post isn't necessarily real estate related, it's important information everyone should know about...Keep track of where you use your debit and credit cards, check your account activity daily and report any fraudulent charges immediately...

Here's to hoping your identity stays safe!

Feel free to contact me at LaShawn@LaShawnNorden.com or at (321) 377-0157 for a private consultation to discuss your selling or buying needs!

Subscribe in a reader

Re-Blog

Comments(27)

Comment

Show All Comments

Sort:

Mike Saunders

Retired - Athens, GA

LaShawn - the same thing happenned to me 4th of July weekend, they hit my account for almost $3000. Luckily, got it all back. They finally caught the person a month ago, he cloned amost 500 deit cards. My credit union covered everything in 5 days. They suggest only using the pin in very trusted locations, use it as a charge card all the other times.

Oct 13, 2008 12:31 PM

Chris Brown- Florida Home Loan Specialist | Certified Mortgage Planner

Chris Brown | Certified Mortgage Planners - Orlando, FL

Chris Brown 407.367.2974

LaShawn

I too was a victim of ID Theft... i am glad to share my experience and how to go from here is you like...call or email me. I dont want to spam your blog... so all the info is on my profile.

Chris the impelemtner

Oct 13, 2008 12:56 PM

Bill Gassett

RE/MAX Executive Realty - Hopkinton, MA

Metrowest Massachusetts Real Estate

Bummer Lashawn! It is a good thing you noticed it so quickly.

Oct 13, 2008 01:35 PM

LaShawn Norden

Keller Williams Heritage Realty - Longwood, FL

REALTOR, (321) 377-0157, Your Real Estate Advocate in Central FL

Debbie~It's sad, but I'll be paying cash for things a whole lot more now rather than using my debit card. Thankfully, it was a short-lived attack on my account (which has already been canceled) and I am filing a police report in the morning...watch out bad guy, if you are reading this because we have an IP address and an email...too bad for you!

Mike~Ouch, $3000??? Not only is that scary, but it's also a pain in the behind to make the calls to get it corrected. I should bill the bad guy for my time :)

Chris~Seems like this is a pretty common thing...I guess I've been lucky up until this...I'll be smarter from now on for sure.

Bill~Yes, it was a bummer...I'll be happy to have it behind me :)

Oct 13, 2008 04:11 PM

Anonymous

CarolBEE

It's not just the credit card that they go after. When I married my husband, I had the DVM clerk pocket a improperly made Driver's Licence instead of shredding it like she was should have. My Driver's licence was sold to some bad guys that were running around town writing stolen checks out to my name and using the stolen ID to cash them.

I was lucky that the police found them pertty quickly and arrested them. I was not even aware it was happening because it did not affect my bank account. Just my name! According to the local police, the banks had "Wanted" posters in the back room with my name on it. I was very lucky that they did not go to my personal bank or I would have been in jail and confused as to why.

Scary Stuff! So don't forget to keep an eye on that driver's licence too!

Oct 13, 2008 06:50 PM

#12

Leesa Finley

RED Properties - Wake Forest, NC

RED Properties - Raleigh NC Real Estate

Holy cow - that is SCARY! I have NOT been a victim yet but I am shocked at the number that have responded saying that they have been. Now, I am more worried than before!

Oct 14, 2008 10:20 AM

LaShawn Norden

Keller Williams Heritage Realty - Longwood, FL

REALTOR, (321) 377-0157, Your Real Estate Advocate in Central FL

CarolBEE~Dang...how freaky is that?? What ever happened to working for a living, people? Good news is, I met with the police department today and filed a report, contacted all three credit agencies to put a fraud alert on my social security number and met with my local bank branch manager. I know it may not seem like a lot of money (all it is all getting returned), but it's still a hassle and very scary at the same time...thanks for stopping by to comment!

Leesa~Yes, quite scary!

Oct 14, 2008 02:03 PM

Don Rogers

Keller Williams Realty Chesterfield - O'Fallon, MO

Realtor, Broker, CDPE, GRI, OnullFallon MO & St Charles County MO homes

LaShawn,

I am sorry to hear about your issue with identity theft. And I must say Thank you for this post and how important it is to constantly check what is going on with your bank account.

Oct 14, 2008 11:32 PM

Kathy Passarette

Creative Home Expressions - Mount Sinai, NY

L.I. Staging/Decorating

LaShawn ~ That is scary! Thank God you caught it early and I guess it was a good thing that company called you! Do they close your current bank account now and open a new one? I had to do that with a credit card once that I used ONE time on a cruise trip (the island excursions) and it wound up with over $1,500.00 in charges.

Oct 15, 2008 01:37 AM

Richard Weisser

Richard Weisser Realty - Newnan, GA

Richard Weisser Retired Real Estate Professional

Featured in the group "Whacked!!!"

LaShawn, this is so important, thanks for sharing.

Oct 15, 2008 03:29 AM

Kat Bent

Keller Williams - Raynham, MA

My boss just had a similiar experience with his college age son - only they completely drained his account. Scary times.

Oct 15, 2008 03:52 AM

LaShawn Norden

Keller Williams Heritage Realty - Longwood, FL

REALTOR, (321) 377-0157, Your Real Estate Advocate in Central FL

Don~Thanks for stopping by...you are right, we all need to be more aware of who we give our information to and why we give it to them...as it might end up in the wrong hands.

Kathy~I didn't have to close the account because the debit card was cancelled and there is a fraud alert on my account now...I also called all three of the credit agencies to put a free 90 day alert on those as well.

Richard~Thanks for featuring me in "Whacked!!" If there is any situation that is "whacked" it is this one!

Kat~Ouch...I can't believe that. I hope the bank recovered his money once they realized it was fraud.

Oct 15, 2008 09:19 AM

Bill Gillhespy

16 Sunview Blvd - Fort Myers Beach, FL

Fort Myers Beach Realtor, Fort Myers Beach Agent - Homes & Condos

Hi LaShawn, Scary how easily these creeps can get our info. Yet, you seldom seem to see them getting caught.

Oct 15, 2008 09:59 AM

Chip Jefferson

Gibbs Realty and Auction Company - Columbia, SC

I hope you were insured against identity theft. We pay a annual premium to have this watched and to be insured up to 1MM. Great if I need it!

Oct 15, 2008 10:44 PM

Richard Weeks

Dallas, TX

REALTOR®, Broker

There are some really evil people out there. Lucky for me I will not have to deal with them much longer as I will be moving to the Bahamas. You see I got an email from a banker in Nigeria that a long lost cousin of mine died and now I am going to inherit $30,000,000. All I had to do was send them my bank account number and my social security and drivers license numbers.

Oct 15, 2008 10:53 PM

Anita Beach

RE/MAX Select Real Estate - Maple Valley, WA

Real Estate Assistant - Maple Valley, WA

I sorry to hear that it happened to you. I do hope that you are able to recoop the money that they spent. Thanks for sharing and it's good to let people know - it happens everywhere and we all need the reminder to be careful.

Oct 16, 2008 09:25 AM

April Hayden-Munson

Brookfield, WI

Brookfield Wisconsin Real Estate

I wish there were tougher laws to stop these jokers. How about they get a life!! i am sorry to hear this has happened to you!

Oct 16, 2008 10:26 AM

David Slavin

Keller Williams Premier - Katy, TX

CDPE, ABR, SRES Keller Williams Premier

I'm sorry to hear that this happened to you. I've had my checking account hijacked and thousands of dollars of checks written. Luckily my back caught it and stopped everything and gave me back all of my money.

Oct 16, 2008 11:02 AM

Chuck Willman

Chuck Willman - Alpine, UT

NewHouseUtah.com

Been there and my-oh-my is it not a walk in the park. My American Express thief had very similar tastes to your membership seeker.

Oct 22, 2008 11:59 AM

Cristal Drake

Prudential California Realty - Fullerton, CA

Realtor - Fullerton Real Estate

Yikes, that is really scary! About 10 years ago, someone opened a cell phone in my name. I didn't even know until they called me because my bill was past due. They were so mean and I finally told them to send me the contract and of course, not my signature!

Oct 23, 2008 04:36 PM