So we have had a pretty weird month around here. I have wondered if we moved into the Bermuda Triangle, except then I would expect the weather to be much more tropical and I really should be drinking more fruity drinks...I might have to work on that. Most of you know about the microburst that smashed our trampoline all up and down our neighbor's property. Now here's the latest twist.
Yesterday, I was going through the charges on our credit card statement. And I noticed a charge for 15.95 from a place called stampsdotcom. Curious, I don't remember ordering any stamps. So I glanced further back on my statement and I find the same charge has occurred for the last 4 months (so I don't check it every month, we never use it, I know how much to pay on it every month, so some months I just pay it online without checking. trust me, that's a habit that just changed :)). So I have Matt call this elusive stampsdotcom that both of us are certain we didn't sign up for. It turns out it is a service where you pay a monthly fee and then you can run your envelope through the printer and it prints your postage on it for you. And the account had been opened, but never used. The helpful representative was alerted to our account by our telephone number, so they have our credit card info as well as our phone number. But the weirdest part? Are you ready, because this is a little X-Files. The name on the account is Matt's sister's name. I won't put it on here, we'll just call her MS (for Matt's sister, clever little thing, aren't I?). And not only is it her MARRIED name on the account, it is her physical address on the account. Her home address, her name, our credit card and phone number.
Now, we haven't seen MS in over two years. So it just doesn't seem likely that she flew here from California, snuck into my purse, stole the credit card, flew home, and signed up for....stamps? I mean, does that make sense? Matt called MS and she was as baffled as we were, she has heard of that website, but has never been to it.
Our next guess was that a crook had stolen our credit card number. So let's just run that scenario. A thief, let's say an internet hacker, or whatever the term is these days, stole our credit information. So they go to the trouble of finding out Matt's sister's name and signing up for...STAMPS? And the helpful dude at stamps dot com told us that the account has never been used. So this stamp addicted, coked out, internet thief went to all this trouble (do you like how i made him coked out? i mean why not, right?) to steal both OUR info and MS'S info. And he doesn't go on a diamond spree, or flee the country first class courtesy of our credit card. No, he makes sure he never has to stamp his own envelope again. Because let's face it. It is pretty rough taking the self-adhesive stamp and sticking it on an envelope. It would make life much simpler to steal two seperate people's information and pay DOUBLE what a book of stamps would cost at the local post office, and then not even use the service just for the promise of being able to print out his postage on his envelope. Hmm. What a genius? Can you see why I assigned him to be on coke?
My final guess is that maybe someone stole our number, and her info (although how would they even link us? She has a different last name?) and was testing the account. Put a tiny charge on and see what happened. Leave it for a couple of months and if we didn't notice, that's when they'd go on their shopping trip to Tiffany's or buy the plane tickets. So we will be closing the account. And I will be checking my credit card statement thoroughly each month. And really, if this was the case, then the joke is on the coked out hacker. Because there isn't enough on that card to get you very far, buddy. So just leave it alone. Okay? Get yourself some help.
Has anyone heard of something like this? I am totally agog at the whole thing. My mind has been reeling since it happened, there just isn't a logical explanation. I keep waiting for Ashton Kutcher to jump out and tell me I've been punked. But since I don't think I'm famous enough for that, I am just going to go fix me a fruity drink and lay out on the driveway and pretend it's the Bermuda beach, because I think the Bermuda Triangle is my life now.
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8 comments:
That is so random!! You have inspired me to watch my credit card a little more closely.
i will confess. it was me. i am addicted to buying ridiculously overpriced stamps. i maxed out my own credit card doing just that, and i had to turn somewhere, and i chose you. ok, that's not true, but i'm glad you caught it before they bought their own private island with your credit card!
I had a baffling stupid card thing happen to me, too! It was a charge on MY debit card DURING the time that I was in the middle of nowhere at girls camp. I had my card with me, so I was baffled. Also, it was a 30.00 charge. I agree with you... what crook would go through all the trouble for 30.00?? The bank is still investigating it for me, and of course, that card is closed. Weird stuff!
Do do do do Do do do do (I hope you are humming the Twilight Zone song here). Dude- that is crazy! It's kind of scary to think what an electronic world we live in these days where all of our information is just out there for some crazy hacker to find. Kind of makes you want to hide all of your cash in your mattress and never shop online again, huh?
Maybe we should come visit. I could use a fruity drink and a little warm weather (even if it is pretend). I agree that it is strange to have your info and MS's info. Odd connection! Maybe he was trying to flee the country but he went to the wrong website and bought stamps instead of a plane ticket. Both websites look official!
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I've never had anything like that happen but I did have an experience with a coked out theif!
We lost our phone but though SLC had just misplaced it around the house and the battery had died and we couldn't find it. The bill was $19 for a great plan and the co. didn't offer it anymore. So we hung onto the account for a few months hoping to find the phone. As you we didn't check our phone statement, it was the same every month. Until one month it was like $500. I was like "what!?" I looked at the bill and it had all these calls to a lot of similar phone #'s. I called the phone co. and the lady almost insisted I ask my husband about the #'s. Again, "what?!?!" So I call one. It's for a gay male dating service. I asked him and he admitted it was him....Just kidding, we were shocked. There was 1 # on the bill that was different so I called it. I asked the lady if she recognized my phone # and she said it belonged to her songs cell phone but he cancled it earlier (after I had called "fraud!!!"). So I gave the phone co all the info. but there wasn't much they could do about it. They did take the charge off for us. I now check every page of every bill that we get!!!
sorry, I'm on coke. It was her sons cell phone (not her songs, even though they were probably singing "somewhere over the rainbow with their free cell). And the funny thing is, the # was a 800 number. He had just called it so many times!
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