Learn From Me

I had an identity theft scare in the last two weeks that I'd like to share so you can learn from what was almost a terrible mistake.

I'm in the Philadephia airport rushing to get to a client meeting when I get a call from an unknown number. I pick up and hear an automated message announcing this call is from Citibank (the bank associated with my credit card). A man chimes in soon after and informs me that I have an overdue amount of $90. This seems strange to me as my balances are never that low and I'm very good at paying off my credit card in full monthly.

He says that I'll have a late fee if I don't pay the balance over the phone with him right then. I explain that I don't have my checking account number handy and he tells me that a debit card will work.

I gave him the debit card number and he gives me a confirmation number and says an email confirmation will come once the transaction clears.

Once in the cab, I think through what just happened. A total stranger just told me he needs my debit card number so I wont have a late fee on my credit card statement. At no time did he verify any of my account information.

I call Chase in a panic using the toll free number on the back of my debit card and explain I think my checking account may have been compromised. They verified the payment amount and said that the charge was associated with CitiBank. The kind customer service rep even looked up a legitimate CitiBank phone number so I could verify that it was their bank that had taken my information.

I was lucky. When I called CitiBank they verified that the transaction was legitimate. I had paid off most of the balance weeks prior and must have mis-typed the amount to pay off.

Learn from me. I learned my lession during the 45 minute panic attack. Never will I ever give out this kind of information over the phone. Being distracted while traveling is no excuse.