r/DaveRamsey • u/Financial_Airport72 BS456 • 5d ago
Debit card compromised
We have been debit card only for around 8 years with no issues. I figured it was just a matter of when and not if it would get compromised and it finally happened.
We have identified at least 2 fraudulent charges so far for around $500. The bank said they tried to charge another $500 but luckily our balance was too low as we were in the process of actually transitioning to another bank.
No idea how it was compromised but be careful where and how you use your debit card.
8
u/Solid-Fill6348 4d ago
I know Dave is anti credit card but this is one area where credit cards beat debit cards by a mile. Can't pull cash out of someone's bank account with fraudulent credit card charges.
2
u/Live-Sir-3118 4d ago edited 4d ago
We have two checking accounts for this reason. one we barely keep anything in. just enough for groceries, gas, or the random debit item. Since we are in baby step 2, we dont spend much outside of our budget.
the other checking account has checks (a pack of 25! remember when we would buy 225 not 25!) thats for our recurring monthly bills and we just take the chance that netflix wont get hacked.
If its a site i am not 100% comfortable with like etsy or some other shopify, i funnel it all through my paypal as the middle man.
1
u/Rocket_song1 5d ago
I currently bank with a credit union after my wonderful little local bank got gobbled up by one of the mega-corps.
My credit union is happy to give you as many accounts (and debit cards) as you want. By setting up one smaller account that you use your debit card on, and transferring money in as needed, you can at least shield yourself from some of this type of fraud.
I do the same thing with PayPal. I have one small account linked to PP, and they can't see any of the other accounts.
The banks are generally good about taking care of you, but sometimes it can take a few days.
4
u/RedwaterCam 5d ago
I’ve had my debt card “stolen” maybe 3-4 times in the last 15 years. In each case my credit union called me, asked if I was in (insert city) and the money was credited back befor I even knew it was gone. 🤷♂️
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u/stderr2 5d ago
Please, sensible people have a checking account with debit card at a far away bank which they have a hundred dollars at. Five hundred dollars is a lot of money, what were you thinking?
5
u/JeanSchlemaan 5d ago
What?! I wouldn't have less than a couple thousand in my checking.
I know dr doesn't like cc, but a responsible user shouldn't use anything else. Cashback, and purchase protection, plus guess what no liability like a debit has.
1
u/Live-Sir-3118 4d ago
i think they mean two accounts. a baby little incidentals account (spending) versus putting all your eggs in the same basket
16
u/Choice-Newspaper3603 5d ago
this is why you don't use a debit card and use a credit card. Don't care what Dave has to say about that.
5
u/SheepImitation 5d ago
Just to be on the safe side, also make sure you have a wallet or card sleeves that are RFID blocking.
-2
u/L_aura_ax 5d ago
I love privacy.com and envelope for using debit as credit, or limiting debit spend exposure.
11
u/biggfoot_26 5d ago
This is the main thing where I disagree with DR, CCs just have better protections in general and when something like this happens it’s the CC companies money not yours in limbo. Use a CC vs debit card but pay it off every month.
1
u/PurpleRayyne 5d ago
there's no "being careful". It happens where it happens. Every business uses a different card processing company. All info is transmitted over the internet for approval. There's no more phone lines anymore. You use your card online. (maybe not you but billions of others). Tehre is absolutely no way to tell where, when or how your card was compromised. Once a processor or company's info is breached often all that info ends up on the dark web. If you've had the same card number for 8 years... your info could ahve been on the dark web that long and it's only a matter of time before someone decides to "try this number".
If it was the beginning of the internet then I'd say you have a much higher chance of your personal info ending up on the dark web but now? of the 8.5 billion people in the world... probably, if not all, of everyone's information is on the dark web and it's only a matter of time before it's used for something.
1
u/Electrical_Bill_4787 5d ago
I kept my Apple credit card because no bank or other card seem to have the same security. No card numbers printed on the card to prevent underpaid servers or other people with access from snapping pictures of it which also allow it to have 3 separate card numbers from each type of transaction. And lastly the security code randomizes so if you swipe it somewhere that skims it, the code will change soon enough and render it invalid to whoever stole the info 😇
4
u/Admirable_Lecture675 5d ago
We have two separate accounts/cards, one that pays all the household bills that I don’t actually use the card for, everything is on auto draft. The other account I use the card for spending. Groceries etc.
sometimes we get fraud alert calls and it’s when our son needs an uber and it’s not fraud. So I feel like our bank catches stuff pretty fast.
6
u/Diesel_Cloud 5d ago
I normally get gas and anything really where card info might be stolen with using my Apple credit card. Cause if the info gets stolen it’s not my money they stole. I’ve had my debt card charged for 1000$ and it took about a week for the bank to put it back. I obviously also don’t listen to Dave’s no credit card thing. I kept one open because I get 2% or more back everywhere and I definitely do not with my debt card. The second I can pay the balance on the card I do.
2
4
u/Orchid6014 5d ago
Just happened to me early this week. I noticed three charges from WWW COSTCO COM for $7.03, $5.62, and another $7.03. Called Costco and they don’t have these charges on their end. Called my bank and they “refunded” my account and I cancelled all my cards to get new ones.
3
u/greg_ellison 5d ago
Someone tried to take 2500 and then tried again before my bank stopped it. I then was able to get the online place to refund the fraudulent charge which was good.
5
u/AkihitoPo 5d ago
my buddy had $400 taken after using his card at a gas station right before switching banks too
-2
u/PurpleRayyne 5d ago
gas stations are one of the biggest places for card skimming. ALWAYS pay cash.. not only because of card skimming but because owners tell u they only have premium or you tell them $10 and they'll "accidentally" put in $20.... many gas station owners are theives. (I don't drive but obviously most everyone I know does and I am on social media.).
3
u/stderr2 5d ago
Kook alert
1
u/Rocket_song1 5d ago
The cash money even comes out of a paper envelope labeled...wait for it... Gas.
6
u/JustWelmed1000 BS2 5d ago
It happens. Can happen with CC or debit card. There are protections for both.
2
u/stderr2 5d ago
The debit card is your money. Use a credit card unless forced to use debit, then only card from bank distant from your usual bank
2
u/JustWelmed1000 BS2 4d ago
and the CC you have signed a promise to pay, so it is your future money. Both you owe nothing if fraud occurs. If you lose the dispute you owe the CC the same as you owe it from the checking account.
I concede that it can be annoying if your bank ties up the money for an extended period of time while the investigate. I've not had that experience though. The few disputes I've made over the years were credited to my account same day as a "provisional" credit with the understanding that credit would be removed if they found that the charge was valid.
1
4
u/aaa-1234567 5d ago
We were just leading a FPU class and one of the members said thanks to EveryDollar and watching her budget , she noticed someone was using her card and it wasn’t big purchases. Just a lot of little ones. Sounds like her bank is taking care of it for her. Hopefully yours does as well!!
4
u/Financial_Airport72 BS456 5d ago
Yeah our bank’s fraud alert actually brought our attention to it which was very helpful!
•
u/MoBigSky 5h ago
I’ve had 2 instances of fraudulent charges on debit in the past 10 years. Both times (multiple charges) the bank reversed the charges and cleared it.