Full Notification

The Pennsylvania State Police recently received information about a VISA and MasterCard credit card telephone scam that is occurring in the Midwest and moving across the country.

Police advise that the scam is different from others, as scammers provide victims with all the information, except the one piece they want. The callers do not ask for a victim’s card number, as they already have it.

According to police, the caller will claim to be calling from the Security and Fraud Department at VISA. They provide a badge number and say they are calling to verify information, as the victim’s card has been flagged for an unusual purchase pattern. The caller says which bank the card was issued by and asks if the victim has purchased an “anti-telemarketing device for $497.99 from a marketing company based in Arizona.” When the recipient says ‘no,’ the caller says they have been watching the company and will be issuing a credit to the account. They then provide the victim’s address and ask if it is correct.

The caller then states that they will be starting a fraud investigation, and advises the victim to call the 1-800 number on the back of the card and ask for security. The caller then gives a six-digit control number for reference.

The important part of the scam is as follows. The caller then says “I need to verify you are in possession of your card.” The caller asks the victim to turn the card over and look for seven numbers. The first four are part of the card number, and the last three are security numbers. The caller will ask the victim to read the last three numbers.

The caller then claims the information is correct, asks the victim if they have any other questions, thanks them and hangs up.

An unauthorized purchase is made soon after in the amount the caller claimed would be refunded.

The caller never asks for or tells the victim their credit card number.

Police say instead of giving the scammer the three-digit security number on the back of the card, say you will call VISA or MasterCard directly for verification.

VISA stated that the company will never ask for any information on a card, as they already have it.

This appears to be a very active, successful scam, according to the report.