MSE News: Bogus mobile top-ups could spell greater fraud danger

zebrazoouk

BLIMEY I can't believe how many people have been hit by this! I'll add my notch to the bed post as I logged onto my online banking last week and saw the exact same thing - o2 Slough £30.

Called up Halifax and was told there was a another £3.62 going out on an American website and that I should call in the morning as she could see some other things going out but it was too late on a saturday to tell me what they were. Sure enough I call up sunday morning and am told there are 7 other £30 o2 top ups going out!!

Now this is the second time my card has been done over in the last year - same card and funnily enough, one of the transactions was o2 £30 last time (having already been swindled for a £600 television, a £30 remote control (I called up the store where my card had been used over the phone) and my details being entered into a betting website.)

The thing I found strange was that when I got my replacement card, the card number was ONE digit different to my old one, and it was the last digit. Now call me daft but that's a fraudsters dream! Am waiting for my new card to arrive but if its the same again only one number different, I'll be straight down to Halifax.

I wouldn't be surpised if it was the same mob - I guess there can only be a certain number of 3 digit numbers for the security codes on the back of the cards that they need to generate before they'll get the right one and have your card details all over again - made easier by the fact that they only have to change one digit of your card number!

Meh...

what_a_cheek

Last week I had £30.00 taken out of my account from 02(UK)LTD PREPAY, I dont have an account with them. HSBC bank were great got new card to me in two day and money was credited to my account the next day. Two days before the 02 fraud just one pound was taken out by Children's Tropical in Peterborough anybody else had the same thing.

:mad:

andywoody01

hi guys/girls

checked my online banking this morning and had transaction for £30 for 02 topup.
rung barcalys and they cofirmed it was my card (not my partners) that was used so they have canceled it and sending out forms to get me the money back.

is there anyway of finding out where it was done??? just because if was away with work for a week in a remote place and was thinking there which is fine in a way.
just want to check that its not say my local asda where they got it from?? so i can keep well away

Snarf999

Fortunately for me, my card issuer (MBNA) have picked this up before me, went to pay for a car service this morning and had to go through the security checks. Rang MBNA when I got back and apparently I have 2 O2 transactions on my account, one for £10 and one for £20. Also apparently there is a 3 Mobile transaction for £1.95 that is processing also.

The guy from MBNA said that this kind of activity is known and is usually from a brute force attack, trying as many credit card numbers as possible until one works.

It's really annoying that this type of thing can happen with all the checks that are in place nowadays, it appears that it's an O2 issue though in terms of accepting the payments.

rama0927

This thing has just happened to me too. Has anyone gathered what the cause of the probelm is? Is it some keyloger online, or is it dodgy people working in comanies?

On 01/06/2009 I was charged £15 twice for O2(UK)LTD PREPAY - I have never owned an O2 phone or had a contract with them. And my debit card has been broken (it snapped) for about a month now so it must be an online thing.

If its any use, I'm with Barclays, and I have recently signed up to a Three (3) contract, leaving my previous operator Blyk.

I'll have to visit my bank Monday, or shall I just ring up the fraud dept

Snarf999

Where I used to work we had some of the credit card verification software, we also had the algorithms used to verify credit cards. I guess all you need to do is run lots of random numbers through the software and get it to note which combinations of numbers are valid. Then you just run these numbers through any sort of company website that doesn't do any other checks (i.e. O2 apparently) to see which ones are active.

It's annoying, and a fairly simple thing to prevent (Verified by Visa or Securecode for Mastercard), but I don't know why all the companies don't use it (the O2 issue would get solved unless someone had hacked your account).

Ring up the fraud department now (number is usually on the back of the card) if they haven't already suspended your card, otherwise the fraudsters will get away with more.

rb10

Although not O2, I've just had a similar experience with Halifax, in that it's a small fraudulent transaction.

A small amount was authorised through Vue cinemas' web site. Halifax phoned me straight away to confirm whether it was me or not (they said the transaction time was 1.50pm, and I was speaking to their card services dept by 1.51pm). The whole call took under five minutes. They cancelled the transaction (from the following morning, it wasn't showing up on my account on internet banking), and within 36 hours I had a new card in my hand.

So banks can get it right! I was very impressed by the way they handled it. It's been a couple of weeks now, and nothing dodgy has shown up since, so, touch wood, it's all been sorted and is ok now.

rama0927

I got through to someone at Barclays in the end, they sent me to the dispute department which took about 28 mins, then they sent me straight to the fraud department as if I'd made the mistake. But got the car cancelled and dispute forms sent out.

Hardly worth logging it with the police, do you reckon I should anyway so they can add it to their stats? I think it would just be a waste of time.

Snarf999

JackTheWelshman wrote: »

Hardly worth logging it with the police, do you reckon I should anyway so they can add it to their stats? I think it would just be a waste of time.

Don't bother logging it with the police, they pretty much leave it all to the credit card companies' fraud departments to deal with. I suspect the CC companies do actually care about this issue as it costs them alot of money each year.

SSHAW_3

I've got a Nationwide Visa card. Someone used it for a £30 vodafone top up last Fri at 6.15pm by 8pm the Nationwide were on the phone to ask if it was us! Talk about quick off the mark. We don't have vodafone so it wasn't us. Now have new cards but waiting for the pin. Last transaction I did on this credit card was to Amazon. Funny enough a woman yesterday told me same thing had happened to her Tesco credit card. Used on Amazon then vodafone top ups appeared. My Dad used his M&S mastercard on Amazon and someone tried to use it in the States for several hundred dollars.

I def think there is a problem with Amazon and can't understand why this hasn't been sorted. They are a big company so should have got problem fixed. I will still use them but won't store information in my account any more.

Vodafone should be getting lots of declined payments from peoples cards that have been cancelled so why are they continually trying to push through payments on a fraudulent basis? All about money, I suppose.