Debit card fraud....
 

There is another thread on card skimmers where the pros & cons are discussed, and skimmers & scammers get plenty of news. No need to go into that here. If you have ever actually LOST money (not reinstated later), please post your experience. I think the fear mongering might be a bit overdone...

My business account has been taken for hundreds of dollars, multiple times!! MONEY WAS ALWAYS CREDITED BACK TO MY ACCOUNT. I agree kc, a few people making everyone fear using a debit card.
Steve

The whole deal with credit card fraud is that is why we have them rather than cash is so that we have some protection.

I had my debit card info heisted a few years back; think it was at the haircut place as the first thing they tried to buy was hair products, then they paid for credit searches and finally ordered all sorts of stuff and sent it to my address- colon cleanse, get rich seminar stuff and sex toys! Interesting day that was, coincidencetly I had the day off, so got it before they could. Wasn't thinking at the time and should have left it on the porch and watched for them to retrieve.

Anyways, it was a bit of a pain and took up a bunch of time to fix. In the end I probably was out $15 total?

I stopped using a debit card as I realized that all my money could have been drained if I hadn't caught it. Yes I would have got it back, but until that happened I would have been almost broke; with a cc it would just be money on paper and I would not have to be without while everything was corrected.

Wife just got hit last night. Associated with data hack against K mart a few months ago - her bank called her (gotta love small town credit unions) but there were no unusual charges at that time. This is a secondary account that she puts small amounts (usually under $200...) spending money in, they hit her for $85 at an Applebees down south, which actually took her to negative, which then caused a couple of scheduled payments (her netflix bill, some monthly make up thing) to bounce and ... It will be all fixed up Monday.

I work in a secure office that doesn't allow phones on the floor. If the bank tried to text or call me to verify a purchase I may not see that they called until the end of the day. In the meantime, my hacked bank account has been drained and other charges have bounced. Even if the bank makes it right, I've got a lot of explaining to do to those who had debits rejected. No thanks. I use credit cards as a debit card in that I only spend what I KNOW I have in the bank to pay when the bill comes in.

You have "bought" the banker's version of reality I see :(. Keep adding 4% (bank profit) to every one of your purchases but your fantasy version doesn't match what I've found to be true in the real world. My Visa debit card has been compromised a couple of times and was detected by their fraud unit....nary a cent left my checking acct., nor was I contacted "real time". I bet you don't know of a single person who's had their acct. drained either :). Fear mongering....I despise bankers....but I'm biased....spent too many years inside of two megabanks in my youth....YMMV.

When debit cards came out there was ZERO fraud protection and that sold me on steering clear. Maybe things have changed but I don't care.

Does your debit card improve your credit rating? My credit card does.
Does your debit card pay you 2% cash back rebate on every purchase? I'll let the big bad bankers pay me and I haven't paid one cent in interest in 25 years or more. No fees. I keep my money an extra month. I feel so abused by those big bad bankers and their lies. :rolleyes:

My credit rating would be hard to improve....I've only checked it once, out of curiosity a few years ago....825. You do your thing, I'll do mine....my debit card is my bestest buddy....I don't leave home without it :)

Oh yeah....things have certainly changed from when debit cards first appeared btw.

But I do NOT pay bankers 2-4% of my purchases either...by using a CC :(.

I don't pay the bankers. They pay me 2% and my fico is north of 800 as well.

So let's be specific: HOW MUCH CASH BACK have you received from your debit card in the last 10 years?

You don't get it....I give up :)

Somebody is paying 4%...and they give you 2% back...drives up the cost of everything. Do you REALLY think the bankers like you that much?

Oh....probably well north of 100k easy....right out of my checking acct. It's my ATM machine and mighty convenient :)

How much cash have you paid bankers over the past 10 years by using a CC :(?

People use debit cards?
Shakes head in amazement.

I'm far happier letting Amex dispute a funny charge than I am trying to get money back into my checking account. YMMV and that's fine, whatever works for you.

Not quite.

When I had a retail/service business, it was worth a few % to keep cash out of employees hands.

.

It works great for me....I've never disputed a charge either, never had too :). If you like paying Amex up to 4% of your purchases then do so....

Shakes head in amazement also :(

Suckers....Amex is NOT your friend.

But I'm not paying.
Apparently, the angry debit card users are paying my 2% cash back but not getting any for themselves.
So why not use the system to my advantage? I didn't make the rules. I just play within the rules to my best advantage. You aren't getting it (2% cash back). How much did you say you've gotten back in the last 10 years? Aw, never mind.

That's an interesting perspective...but has nothing to do with consumers :). Did you actually give a % back for using a card... CC or debit? Why as a merchant, would you have not preferred a debit over a CC? I do not understand your post....'splain it to me.

Do you think the merchant is eating the cost or passing it on to you with higher prices?

You truly don't get it....I'm done here :)

I don't think you are too stupid to understand my question so I have to assume are avoiding giving an answer.
That said, to be clear:
You bank is only giving you money YOU gave to them. Net income is ZERO.
My credit card is paying me a profit for using the card with zero cost to me. I feel so used and abused.

The merchant doesn't charge me a surcharge and there is no cash discount so MY cost is ZERO.

Seems like the only losers here are people angry at the bank. Here's an idea: lets really stick it to the bank. Put all you money in the mattress!

I'm not running a business and I pay cash when it gets me a discount, so I'm not paying the 4% you are so hung up on. I'm also not looking to be friends with a service that I pay for.

Or are you saying that all your debit transactions are discounted and there's no crime wherever you live? That sounds like a great place, but NY isn't quite as utopian.

I'll ask again.
Does the merchant discount your purchase to reflect the use of your debit card over my credit card? Or do you pay the same as I do?