I recently told a nice lady at the Vince concert to buy the CD online and she had never bought anything over the internet...I went into detail how it was safe and I'd never had any issues - until yesterday!

I got a call from my visa to verify attempted charges. Someone had my number and was trying to wire money via Western Union (many times for various amounts...adding up to $3000!). Well, it was not me!

Luckily the Visa company denied the transfers, talked to me, cancelled the card and reissued a new one (and contacted credit agencies).

Now, I am happy it was caught but I am also worried and a bit "freaked" out. How did this guy get my number? What other info does the "bad guy" have? Is this a one time thing or should I worry about future problems? It was a card a use for online purchases....

I lowered my limit on all my cards and plan to check my credit reporting agencies to ensure no one is opening credit in my name....

Just an FYI to be careful and it's a good idea to check the big 3 credit reporting agencies at least once a year (Experian, Equifax & Trans Union) (it's free) to make sure no one has stolen your identity.

CJ

Thanks for the info, Charlie..I'm so sorry that that happened to you. Unfortunately, it happens all to often these days. Our company credit card # was stolen a few years ago...the person tried to order merchandise and ship it to another state...we were notified about it and the credit card company did the same thing..closed the accounts and issued us new cards..they traced it back to someone working at a motel that Bruce had stayed in a few weeks prior to the offense...you just never know these days. And you can't be too careful.

I have had one incident of that kind. If I had not been so angry it would have been funny. There was a charge for a digital camera in Pennsylvania for $599.00 and $1.00 charge for a cup of coffee.My card company did the same as Charlies. Called me and I thought it was a telemarketer and hung up on him .Thank goodness the guy called right back and immediately told me it was an identity theft situation and ask if I had been in Pa. I told them about a 100 years ago but not recently. The charge for the camera was at idigital.com. I tried calling them and never got any answer. Strange . Where there is a will there is a way. I order sevral times a year over the Internet and that is the only incident of that kind I have ever had to deal with. I wasn't charged and the card companies are really good about checking your charges to see if a pattern has changed . I still think it's as safe as going out in the public and charging anything on a credit card.