Deception is something I am not good at. I don't enjoy playing tricks on people or fooling them into believing I'm something that I am not. I could never rip anyone off financially, because my sense of honour and pride would not allow it. The guilt to me, would not be worth the gain of such a thing. I am fiercely independent, ask for nothing and love the feeling of standing on my own two feet. I am certain these are all reasons why I find it so difficult to understand and accept when I am on the receiving end of deceptive behaviour.
This morning, I had a call from the Visa Fraud Protection Squad to inform me of suspected fraudulent activity on my credit card. We went through a series of verification details to ensure I was who I said I was (ironic really) and it was confirmed that an individual half a world away in Canada had used my credit card details to attempt to purchase $500 worth of groceries. While I was incredibly grateful to Visa for their speedy action in identifying this situation and ensuring it did not go any further, I couldn't help feeling annoyed and rattled. In fact, I felt a little shaky throughout the entire phone call.
The idea of someone, somewhere in the world tapping into my private space and using my information for their own gain, with no consideration for my personal situation, disgusts me. I feel fortunate not to have lost any actual money as a result of this weird ordeal, but the inconvenience it has caused is frustrating and senseless. I am without a credit card for 7-10 working days and the automatic direct debits I have drawing from the card ALL need to be changed. Some of my bills are due to be paid in the coming days. The cyber world is a vast expanse, filled with many wonderful things, but on days like this, I'm bluntly reminded of the unavoidable sinister side that lurks beneath.
This is an unfortunate downside to modern technology and so scary to think of how easy it is for criminals to do.
ReplyDeleteAm so glad you had a good outcome even with the inconvenience it has caused...it could have been alot worse.
Don't let it spoil the rest of your week Julie :)
x
It's a horrible, horrible feeling isn't it?
ReplyDeleteWe were lucky a few weeks back as we caught someone at it early on too.
I still felt totally violated.
Where is the conscience, people??!
I could never knowingly steal like that.
I imagine they must totally diassociate from the people on the other end of all those digits.
:-(
Gosh that is scary!
ReplyDeleteAlmost unbelievable too that your details have been stolen to buy something as routine as groceries.
What a relief it was detected!
Very scary and such an awful reminder of the negative side of technology.
ReplyDeleteI hope it gets sorted quickly.
xox
Hi Julie..why? Bad things do happen to good people..that's life, but never fun. I am sure if your ring those people you owe money to and explain, that they will give you leeway and understanding...good communication with them is the key. I am so glad that they are dealing with the situation for you and have found the culprits..at least they won't get away with it and will bear the consequences of their actions.
ReplyDeleteHow horrible Julie, hope it is all sorted out soon xx
ReplyDeleteit's scary isn't it...and I often think about putting my personal life on show in such a public arena. My mind could wander to very dark places if I let it. I hope you get everything sorted soon. Who buys $500 worth of groceries in one transaction anyway? x
ReplyDeleteOh shit! Glad it got all sorted before something too icky happened! This gives us all a gentle reminder to make sure we have secure user names, passwords etc....!
ReplyDeleteCripes, Julie! How unnerving. I would feel exactly the same. Thank goodness Visa nipped it in the bud. J x
ReplyDelete