Credit Card Comprimised...

So, I logged into my e-mail the other day and recieved a financial alert.

One of my credit card balances had gone above the alert setting. The problem? It was one of the cards that I didn't used.

I logged into my credit card account and there they were... five transactions from the same place that racked up to almost $250. I immediatly called my credit card company to tell them and they were quite helpful with my problem. They are going to send me a form that allows me to contest the charges and once I mail out the form, the credit card company will take care of the rest. The credit card company will check with the vendor to see when the transactions occured along with whatever other items might show whether or not I made the transaction. I was told that it could take as long as 60 days before the transactions are cleared and I recieve a credit for the transactions.

The only reason that I caught the transaction was because of my account alert. Otherwise, I may have somehow glanced over the statement and paid it without a second thought.

How often do you review your credit card statements for transactions that you may not have actually made? Now I know to check my statement on a regular basis...

Until next time,
Thor

Sites walking you through how to contest the charges/Avoiding credit card fraud

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/cards.htm
http://www.tamingthebeast.net/articles2/card-fraud-strategies.htm
http://www.scambusters.org/CreditCardFraud.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Credit_card_fraud