Tips, news, and resources on sounder sleep, natural health, and financial success.
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In Today's Chat
1. Today's quote
2. A Sneaky Way Crooks Stole My Credit Card Number
3. What's new on my website: Dangerous effects of lack of sleep
4. Coming up next: How to shrink under eye puffiness
5. The only way to build an online business
Today's Quote
How far that little candle throws his beams!
So shines a good deed in a naughty world.
—William Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice
A Sneaky Way Crooks Stole
My Credit Card Number
Here's something else we can all lose sleep over.
Slimeball criminals now have a new way to charge stuff to our credit cards. And get this:
• They never need to see your credit card
• They don't need to know your name
• They don't need to know your social security number
• They don't need to know your address
• They don't need that three digit number on the back of your card
Heck, they don't even need to know your entire credit card number.
How can that possibly be?
Here's how. And here's what happened.
There I am, having a nice quiet Saturday, reading the book On Writing, by Stephen King (a great book all writers should read).
The phone rings. It's an automated message from the fraud department of my credit card company. Seems they detected some unusual activity on my credit card. The message said to call the credit card company right away.
I was suspicious the phone call was even from my credit card company. So I logged into my secure online credit card account.
Sure enough. My credit card account had been frozen. The card could not be used again until I called a special phone number.
I called the number and spoke to a woman from the fraud department. A charge had been placed on my card for $2.
I had never heard of the company that placed the charge. Definitely a fraud.
Here's how this credit card scam works
Millions of credit cards all start with the same six numbers. So here's how the lowlifes who are too sick in the head to work for a living take advantage of this.
There's a piece of software the crooks program with the first six numbers all these credit cards start with.
They then fire up the software and it starts cranking out numbers. When the software hits on a 16-number combination that is a real credit card, a charge can then be placed on your credit card.
Don't ask me how the software knows when it hits a real credit card, because I don't know.
Once the criminals have the credit card number, they then place a small test charge on your card. It's called a temporary authorization. In my case, these thieves put a charge of $2 on my card. Sometimes they only ding your card for $1.
If they manage to get this first $1 or $2 charge to go through, they then hit you with a massive charge.
Here's the bad news
I told the person from my credit card company that this charge was not authorized by me. She then told me, “Well, this card of yours is, as of right now, canceled and we will send you a new one. You'll have it in a week or so.”
Fine with me. I was home sitting on the couch.
But imagine if you are traveling. Perhaps in a different state or a foreign country and this happens to you. How will you pay for anything if this is the only card you are carrying?
Some ideas I've thought of
to protect yourself
1. Check your credit card account online frequently, maybe even daily
2. If you and your spouse—or significant other—have a joint credit card account, make sure when you travel that you each carry a completely different card than the other is carrying. That way, if one card gets frozen, you're still okay.
3. Always check your statement balance as soon as it becomes available.
4. Be sure you recognize every single charge that is on your card. For example, when you buy something, be sure to write down what the company name will be that places the charge.
Sometimes I buy stuff and then the charge does not look familiar because the name does not ring a bell with me. Then I always go, “Oh yeah, they said this charge would be from XYZ.”
Here's the good news
Fortunately, you cannot be held responsible for fraudulent charges if you report them promptly.
And credit card companies are pretty darn smart about watching out for stolen credit card numbers. They keep a close eye on what you buy and the buying patterns of how you charge items.
Am I afraid to use my card now? Heck no. I charge stuff all the time. I'm not going to let some degenerates dictate how I live my life.
To paraphrase Shakespeare from today's quote: the decent, honest people of this world must be like candles and throw off beams of goodness that overcome evil. A little goodness does go a long way.
What's new on my website and
what's coming up next
I just posted an article about what happens to your vision and hearing from the effects of lack of sleep. Dangerous and interesting.
Click here to read that article.
I'm also working on a new article on how to shrink puffy eyes and get rid of dark circles under eyes. I'll let you know when I post that.
Also, when it's ready, I'm going to send you my ebook on a simple way to achieve your goals in 2013 and beyond. No charge. Just download it and get to work on getting what you want out of life.
Finally, building a website:
buy one get one free
If you would like to build a website like mine...and work your way to some extra income—or even financial independence from a job—there's no time like now to get started.
This is the only way I recommend you try to build a website and online business.
Pick something you love to do and start a website about it.
Right now you can buy one website package and get the other one for no cost. This same offer, by the way, is how I got started in this business. If you're even a little bit curious,
click this link to learn more.
Okay, that's it for today's chat.
Life is an adventure. Keep exploring.
I'm outta' here. We'll chat soon.
Rich
Rich Silver
Sleep & Health Writer
Copywriter/Consultant
P.O. Box 95
Dahlonega, GA 30533
Sleep Passport
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