Jan 11, 2011
This is a scam. The representative seemed quite aggressive when I questioned the origins of the call. She gave me her ID # and the name of the organization to appear legit. They were also very skilled in getting information. For example, they knew I had a credit card with a particular bank. When they asked me to confirm my account number, I asked that they confirm the last 4. She said she could not provide that information (which is the norm). So I gave the last 4 digits and she said "that is correct". I then gave my whole account number. At that point she was albe to retrieve the balance on the card. She then requested the expiration date - which was the red flag! What saved me from this scam was that the issuing bank recently sent me a new card that I had not yet activated. When they asked for my expiration, I told them that I didnt have the new card to provide the new expiration date. She then asked if the existing card worked. Because I didnt have the expiration date, she was asking for all this other information to "verify" my identity. She then transferred me to another rep to wrap up the deal. When he explained "the program" I immediately googled the name of the organization and saw links revelaing that it was a scam. I advised him of what I saw on line and to remove my number from theor call list and he got very defensive. The line disconnected and then he called me from a 951 area code. I called the issuing bank and told them what happened. The forwarded me to the fraud department and are issuing a new card.