Egg card - Potential Security Risk letter

AndyOv

Just a query, I've had a letter from Egg (it looks official - correct details etc) saying that "As part of our ongoing security activities to protect and safeguard your accounts, we have identified a potential security risk on you Egg Card."

They go on to say they are going to block my account as a precautionary measure and the block will come into effect end of today. The letter arrived today, posted 1st April (fools joke?).

They then say I'll get a completely new card with a new number in seven days. This is a bit of a pain as I have several recurring payments and I'm going to have to figure out how I am going to pay for them while my credit card is out of action.

I've checked online tonight and there's no unusual activity shown on my recent or past statements (I check regularly).

The thing that concerns me is this bit of the letter:

"The Direct Debit will automatically transfer onto the new account number but if your next payment is due with the next 10 days please make sure the next payment is collected. If not, you may need to make an alternative payment."

Does that mean they'll take the payment once I have my new card number and have activated it (I will lose all access after tonight) and that I must only check that it does go out? Or is it more sinister and I might get charged for not making a payment because I can no longer pay in our out of the account?

I also know that at some point I'm going to get a Barclay card since the recent take over but in the letter I had on that I'm sure they said it would be Barclays that would be contacting me about those arrangements!

Oh, in the past when ever Egg has thought I had a suspicious payment they would phone my home number with an automated service and I'd get to specify if they are OK or not. Not had any calls to that effect.

Been with egg since it started with its wonderful 9.9% and cash back deal, but it's been going downhill for the last five years or so. So maybe it's time to move on (any suggestions).

I wonder if I'm not seen as a good Egg customer of late, as for a few years now I have been paying off my balance in full every month. Anyone else had similar problems?

Jennifer_Jane

No, not received anything like that. I'd phone the number on the Egg website rather than worrying.

lisyloo

The potential risk does not necessarily mean it's connected to your account management.
Someone might have left a laptop on a bus or something.

Does that mean they'll take the payment once I have my new card number and have activated it

No it doesn't.
Why don't you read what it says?
If your DD is due in the next 10 days you need to make alternative arrangements (pay with switch on line?).
If it's not due in the 10 days then it'll work fine.
It's as simple as that.

This is different to your new Barclays card or suspicious activity.

Stop being paranoid.
They just got some accounts that they are not sure are safe anymore. It's not necessarily to do with you or your account activity.

I'm not trying to be nasty but you seem to be reading all sorts of stuff into this that simply isn't there.
Just read the letter and take it at face value.

AndyOv

Thanks for the warm fuzzy welcome and understanding LisyLoo, you're a wonderful person. Why do you think I was asking, maybe you thought I hadn't read it as I type it in? I simply didn't fully understand what it meant.

My next payment is due in the next 10 days (tomorrow in fact) and my query was around what this actually means as if I can't access my account for the next 7+ days, and my account number is changing, how do I pay the outstanding balance and would I get charged interest?

Not having had issues like this in the past and that I could not get through to a real person at egg, as I've been a long time subscriber to the site I thought I might ask here in the forums if anyone had experienced this and what it might mean. I don't expect to get a black and white definitive answer from anyone but Egg, but if you don't know something why not ask for some help and advice?

Sorry to have disturbed your evening.

coolesticeking

I've had something like this in the past with Capital One, one day I decided that I was not going to use any credit cards anymore and I cut it up into a million pieces.

Kept an eye out on the online statement as you can never be too sure, and no payments etc..

But one day with no phone calls etc from Capital One I got a letter stating that I would get a new card due to security with a new card number to boot... They went along the lines of saying that you don't need to report this to the police, as we would do that if required to do so (I didn't have a clue what they was going on about, I just put it that maybe someone had tried to clone the card or put it back together - best of luck!)

I got the new card a few days after and although I don't use it still to this day I never heard anything after this.

The new card works just like before...

Was just strange and out of the blue!

If you are worried though, contact them on the standard customer services number listed on the website and none from any letters just to be sure.

big_mortgage

Hi Andy

Yes I have had this earlier in the year, called up and they basically said my number had been compromised thru no fault of my own. Got sent a new card and that seems ok, but has been declined on a few occasions, worked second time though.

Atom

Maybe during the transition to barclaycard they put everyones unencrypted details on a USB and lost it on the train ?

bubieyehyeh

I had a similar letter from capital one last year, but they wouldn't tell me why. I got the impression it was due to some website I had used being hacked and my card number might have been snafled.

CIFASking

I used to have to send similar letters out to people whilst working for another bank. Like some of the previous posts say, it could be that your card number has turned up somewhere that's deemed to be unsafe (eg laptop seized by police with 10,000 card numbers on it), that someone you've shopped with has had a data breach (TK Maxx had this happen over the past couple of years) or that suspicious transactions have been attempted using your card number, but have been knocked back meaning they won't show on your statement.

Best idea is to call a number that you trust for EGG, speak to customer services and they'll be able to pass you to the right people in the security department. Sadly they're unlikely to tell you how your card has been compromised, and leave you guessing... it's usually the way.

mamamoo_3

I got one of these today

lisyloo

Thanks for the warm fuzzy welcome and understanding LisyLoo, you're a wonderful person.

I'm really sorry if you took it the wrong way, I was trying to help.
Just cos I got my tone wrong in one post does not make me a bad person (I hope).
Anyway I hope you got it all sorted out.