Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter: Don’t Fall for Telephone Scam Seeking Credit Card Information

November 1, 2007 -- INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter is alerting Hoosiers to a troubling scam where con artists call and pretend to be a consumer’s credit card institution informing them of fraud on their account. In reality, the scam artists are attempting to obtain credit card information that would allow them to steal the consumer’s identity.

“What’s particularly troubling about this scam is these scammers already have a stock pile of personal information about the card holder that might make them inclined to believe they are talking to their credit card company,” Carter said. “We can’t emphasize enough that a legitimate credit card company will never call you and request that you provide them information on your card.”

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In this scam, the con artist calls and pretends to be a Fraud Investigator from a credit card institution with important fraud information for the consumer. They claim the “company” learned that the consumer’s credit card was used fraudulently and then offer to credit the account. The con artist then claims that the consumer must confirm their identity by providing them the 3 or 4 digit verification number on the back of the card.

The scam artists often have the name, card number, and address of the consumer. All they need to complete the scam is the verification number. Because the scammer has the personal information, the consumer might be tempted to provide additional information.

If a consumer is contacted by a “fraud investigator” they should hang up immediately and contact their credit card institution directly.

The attorney general reminds consumers to never give out information to people who call unsolicited.

Source: Indiana Attorney General