The World is Going Mad - Privacy/Security/Spam

[101RRS]

I had a death in our family late last year, and of course various Government Departments and other organisations need to be advised to stop things like pensions, finalise tax affairs, services etc.

Well the standard answer when most are contacted is - sorry you are not a listed representative on the persons account and we cannot speak with you - hmmm the account holder is now dead and I am the executor of the estate - answer sorry we cannot speak to you - when probate is finalised we can then speak to you - 6 months later when probate is achieved, lots of money has to be returned with its own trials and tribulations.

Ever sat on a phone for an hour trying to get onto a Govt dept, - the Tax Office no longer directs you to an area - they now just say too busy and hang up. I appreciate privacy is important but when it means transactions cannot be done it becomes absurd.

A friend, who is a disabled pensioner, mother died during the week. She has a funeral insurance fund but because the son uses a different name payment is withheld until it can be sorted out. The son being on a pension does not have the funds to pay for the funeral, so I offered to meet the costs and we can sort out repayment when the funeral insurance is sorted.

Tonight I tried to do a EFT transaction to transfer the funds to the son's Commonwealth Bank savings account. No problems from my bank's end but then I get a call from them saying the C Bank has blocked the transaction as suspected fraud. So I call the C Bank and they will not act on the basis of my call but require the receiver to call then which he did but at this time of night they are only interested if his card had been stolen.

I appreciate the concern about security and privacy but when the security processes then stop doing legitimate business, it is ridiculous - even with my Bank confirming the transfer is legit, the C Bank will still not allow the transfer.

The world is going mad.

Garry

[NavyDiver]

A notification about a $600ish transaction popped up on my phone via Bank app. A few minutes later a 2nd 500ish transaction popped up! Both had been flagged as suspect before I called a few minutes later.

One was for a online purchase in New York from First Aid Beauty First Aid Beauty | Sensitive Skin Specialists (https://www.firstaidbeauty.com/) and the second from Glo Science which sells teeth whitening stuff GLO Teeth Whitening: Kits, Products & Gels | 4K+ Reviews (https://gloscience.com/)

My smile was not brighter with the over $1k AUD made in $usd at one am US time or 1400 ish here in Oz. First Aid beatuty might be beyond helping me as well [biggrin][biggrin]

Honestly saw a rant about a guy refusing to identify himself in a bank when he was trying to access his money. Perhaps he should sign a disclaimer if he is ripped off by tom dick or harry pretending to be him its ok?

On the FLIP side I have found the VIC Services app very helpful in proving I am who I am without digging out my passport, Drivers License and ..... again and again for identification 3 times recently.

I do not miss my passbook account! Paper is worse in many ways. A coup in Fiji took deposit slips away leaving my account inaccessible for almost 4 weeks in the 80s :)

Interesting note about yesterday's Debt card instant cancellation after the fraud was a new one was in my bank app for use instantly! The solid new card will take a week I think.

It's very frustrating that Federal side is slower than the Vic side in helping ID!

I suspect its going to get worse before it gets better.

[4bee]

I had a death in our family late last year, and of course various Government Departments and other organisations need to be advised to stop things like pensions, finalise tax affairs, services etc.

Well the standard answer when most are contacted is - sorry you are not a listed representative on the persons account and we cannot speak with you - hmmm the account holder is now dead and I am the executor of the estate - answer sorry we cannot speak to you - when probate is finalised we can then speak to you - 6 months later when probate is achieved, lots of money has to be returned with its own trials and tribulations.

Ever sat on a phone for an hour trying to get onto a Govt dept, - the Tax Office no longer directs you to an area - they now just say too busy and hang up. I appreciate privacy is important but when it means transactions cannot be done it becomes absurd.

A friend, who is a disabled pensioner, mother died during the week. She has a funeral insurance fund but because the son uses a different name payment is withheld until it can be sorted out. The son being on a pension does not have the funds to pay for the funeral, so I offered to meet the costs and we can sort out repayment when the funeral insurance is sorted.

Tonight I tried to do a EFT transaction to transfer the funds to the son's Commonwealth Bank savings account. No problems from my bank's end but then I get a call from them saying the C Bank has blocked the transaction as suspected fraud. So I call the C Bank and they will not act on the basis of my call but require the receiver to call then which he did but at this time of night they are only interested if his card had been stolen.

I appreciate the concern about security and privacy but when the security processes then stop doing legitimate business, it is ridiculous - even with my Bank confirming the transfer is legit, the C Bank will still not allow the transfer.

The world is going mad.

Garry


Got me wacked how Probate can be finalised if they won't speak to you.????????????????????

[prelude]

Makes me wonder, with that recent thread about the simpson recovery going for 14k, how on earth can you pay those guys?! I mean, that is certainly a suspicious transaction! So much money in the middle of nowhere were you do not normally reside etc etc.

Yes, the protection is needed unfortunately but this is getting out of control :(

-P

[Arapiles]

Got me wacked how Probate can be finalised if they won't speak to you.????????????????????

Pretty simple - it's the courts that settle probate, not the banks or the ATO.

But I'm surprised that they'd be turning away an executor who can provide evidence, in order to assess the estate.

[3toes]

Had my card cloned at a petrol station in the UK. Was told afterwards they had the card numbers, CVC and my pin as used a combination of skimmer and camera. Within 24 hours they had spent on it in France, Greece, Dubai, Cairo, Singapore and a couple of South American countries. It was the rapid use of the card in multiple countries that alerted them to a potential issue. So they canceled the card. I only found out as it stopped working and rang to find out why. So if the security hoops which I have to go through to use the card work how does this happen?

[austastar]

Hi,
I'm considering getting a Post Office Master Card with a prepaid amount I can top up online for day to day purchases to avoid exposing the bank account to potential fraudulent opportunities.
Anyone else doing the same or similar?
Cheers

[Arapiles]

So if the security hoops which I have to go through to use the card work how does this happen?

Exactly as you described: employee or business illegally using a skimmer to get the numbers, camera above you to get the PIN and presumably the CVC. What "security hoops" (presumably required by your card provider to get the card) would prevent a hidden camera or a skimmer?

I typically put my hand over the keyboard if I'm putting the PIN in, don't travel with my Australian credit card, use special travel credit cards with a very low limit etc etc. Had someone at a client about 30 years ago steal my credit card details but since I had a low limit which I cleared daily nothing they tried to put through worked before we caught on.

[4bee]

Had my card cloned at a petrol station in the UK. Was told afterwards they had the card numbers, CVC and my pin as used a combination of skimmer and camera. Within 24 hours they had spent on it in France, Greece, Dubai, Cairo, Singapore and a couple of South American countries. It was the rapid use of the card in multiple countries that alerted them to a potential issue. So they canceled the card. I only found out as it stopped working and rang to find out why. So if the security hoops which I have to go through to use the card work how does this happen?



At a pinch maybe one or both of your feet looked different, I'm sure that would arouse suspicion.[biggrin]

[Tote]

I am the treasurer for a small bush fire brigade. Trying to get myself added to the account was a 2 year nightmare. The bank expected that two current signatories would make a 140 km round trip to the nearest branch to sign a form that could not be released to me as it would breach privacy policy because I would know who the signatories were.🙃
I eventually got round them by going to a business banking office who happily gave me the form to fill in because they weren’t bound by consumer privacy regulations. A handy trick to remember.
Regards
Tote

[BradC]

Hi,
I'm considering getting a Post Office Master Card with a prepaid amount I can top up online for day to day purchases to avoid exposing the bank account to potential fraudulent opportunities.
Anyone else doing the same or similar?
Cheers

I have a second Visa card with a **** all credit limit for *all* online purchases. I just log into internet banking, tip whatever I want to spend into it, then spend it.
That way if it does get skimmed, I know because there are a pile of transaction attempts (last one was dan murphys for $500 when the card had about $100 available).

Years ago, I was in the UK, in the middle of bloody nowhere when both my UAE HSBC and Australian NAB cards were both "blocked for fraud", which meant I was stuck in the middle of hicksville and couldn't even buy a train ticket back to London. From then on I've carried a backup. So I have a "daily use" card that has almost no credit, and I carry a "get out of jail" card that I try never to use, but has a credit limit that will get me to an airport and flight home from anywhere.

It has come in handy several times over the years.

Anyway, I digress. I looked at the Aust Post credit/debit card. The advantage in having it be a genuine Visa (or mastercard) is it's in my internet banking and I can toss money into it while standing in the corner of the shop on my phone. It's not linked to anything, so the most they can take is the credit limit. The only issue I had was initially fighting with the bank to get a card with a credit limit < $1k.

Watch the lecture by Frank Abagnale Jr. He recommends his kids to put everything on the VISA/Mastercard. The purchaser protection is worth it. *

* Not investment advice, may be a fire risk, do not eat, keep away from naked flames/ladies, buyer beware, may stain whitegoods or cause arse to look big in jeans.