I received the following information from my sister about a  credit card scam going around the internet. It's trickier than most credit card scams as it lulls you into thinking that the people on the other end are on your side since they ALREADY KNOW your credit card number, but the truth is by the time you get around finding out about it you may be out on $500 or more! I checked the scambusters.org website to find out if it's a real scam and indeed it is, so BE CAREFUL THE NEXT TIME SOMEONE CALLS YOU UP ABOUT YOUR CREDIT CARD INFORMATION!
If by chance you have already fallen for this scam, or any other scam on the net, please see my 2 guides on what you can do to report the scam . Lastly, please vote on this guide, it really helps everyone learn more about these scams and what they can do about them. God bless ya!

This one is pretty slick since the crooks provide YOU with all
the information, except the one piece they want.

Note, the callers do not ask for your card number; they
already have it. This information is worth reading. By
understanding how the VISA & MasterCard Telephone Credit Card
Scam works, you'll be better prepared to protect yourself.

Here's a story passed along by a concerned citizen:

One of our employees was called on Wednesday from "VISA", and
I was called on Thursday from "MasterCard".

The scam works like this: Person calling says, "This is
(name), and I'm calling from the Security and Fraud Department
at VISA. My Badge number is 12460. Your card has been flagged
for an unusual purchase pattern, and I'm calling to verify.
This would be on your VISA card which was issued by (name of
bank).

"Did you purchase an Anti-Telemarketing Device for $497.99 from
a Marketing company based in Arizona?"

When you say "No", the caller continues with, "Then we will be
issuing a credit to your account. This is a company we have
been watching and the charges range from $297 to $497, just
under the $500 purchase pattern that flags most cards. Before
your next statement, the credit will be sent to (gives you
your address), is that correct?"

You say "yes". The caller continues - "I will be starting a
Fraud investigation. If you have any questions, you should
call the 1-800 number listed on the back of your card
(1-800-VISA) and ask for Security.

You will need to refer to this Control Number. The caller then
gives you a 6 digit number. "Do you need me to read it again?"

Here's the IMPORTANT part on how the scam works. The caller
then says, "I need to verify you are in possession of your
card". He'll ask you to turn your card over and look for some
numbers. There are 7 numbers; the first 4 are part of your
card number, the next 3 are the security Numbers that verify
you are the possessor of the card. These are the numbers you
sometimes use to make Internet purchases to prove you have the
card. The caller will ask you to read the 3 numbers to him.

After you tell the caller the 3 numbers, he'll say, "That is
correct, I just needed to verify that the card has not been
lost or stolen, and that you still have your card. Do you have
any other questions?" After you say No, the caller then thanks
you and states, "Don't hesitate to call back if you do," and
hangs up.

You actually say very little, and they never ask for or tell
you the Card number. But after we were called on Wednesday, we
called back within 20 minutes to ask a question. Are we glad
we did! The REAL VISA Security Department told us it was a
scam and in the last 15 minutes a new purchase of $497.99 was
charged to our card.

Long story made short - we made a real fraud report and closed
the VISA account. VISA is reissuing us a new number. What the
scammers want is the 3-digit PIN number on the back of the
card. Don't give it to them. Instead, tell them you'll call
VISA or MasterCard directly for verification of their
conversation.

The real VISA told us that they will never ask for anything on
the card as they already know the information since they
issued the card! If you give the scammers your 3 Digit PIN
Number, you think you're receiving a credit. However, by the
time you get your statement you'll see charges for purchases
you didn't make, and by then it's almost too late and/or more
difficult to actually file a fraud report.

What makes this more remarkable is that on Thursday, I got a
call from a "Jason Richardson of MasterCard" with a
word-for-word repeat of the VISA scam. This time I didn't let
him finish. I hung up!

We filed a police report, as instructed by VISA. The police
said they are taking several of these reports daily! They also
urged us to tell everybody we know that this scam is
happening.

ANALYSIS:

In addition, this credit card scam is neither difficult nor expensive for a scammer to execute (although they couldn't do it too often without running into trouble with their merchant account).

The biggest red flag is the last sentence, though: we do not recommend you tell everyone you know (especially by sending emails). These requests that you tell everyone you know about something are almost always signs of hoaxes.

Action: Never give any info about your personal credit card or other financial information out to people who call you. If you have a question, you should call the phone number on the back of your credit card directly.

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