Bank of America Scam Alert Just Happened
 

Within the last hour my husband went to get a one use credit card to pay the phone bill. A message came up that said the account was frozen for too many tries and gave a phone number to call...he called the phone number and after a very long wait someone came on and asked for account information and PASSWORD...he told them he wouldn't give it to them..he would call the number on the back of our card to make sure it was Bank of America...sure enough the phone number that appeared on the screen to call was not a legitimate Bank of America..so if this happens to you call the number on the back of your card...he did and they have now alerted their security and our account is working properly. Hate to think of the number of people getting scammed while he was on hold..Bank of America never asks for a password...

how did he get the message about the account being frozen?

He was on line at the Bank of America site requesting a one time credit card like we use all the time so we don't give out our credit card number. A message popped up on the screen saying too many attempts when he didn't have any attempts...said to call a number to unlock the credit card...after calling it and being suspicious after they asked for the password he called the credit card safe lock and they checked the number and found it wasn't a valid Bank of America phone number. So someone hacked their site and redirected requests to that phone number...if you give them your password they have access to your credit card...

your computer may be infected if you got re-directed when you tried to get on to your bank's website. I would get it checked out right away.

We were on the banks website, logged in...a hacker got into Bank of America's system.

so what happens now when you go to the bank website?

They had it straightened out in minutes and we were able to use it normally. We were able to give them the phone number of the hacker and their security jumped right on it...I hope they had the Feds knocking on their door quickly. I posted this so no one would get caught in this kind of thing in the future by trusting just because it was on their website didn't mean it was legit...Any message that says call a number should be written down and security number on back of card called. I'm assuming this is true of all banks but I don't know.

wow, that is scary!

Smart thinking on your DH's part! Way to go!

So scary. I get emails like that every now and then. I just trash them. The sad thing is the creeps prey on those who aren't as savvy as your husband (and me).

Are you talking about Shop Safe at BOA?

Thanks for the alert!!

I got a phone call that was similar to that. It told me that with "my credit card". It didn't specify which card. It gave a number, which was not a number for any of our cards, to call. When I called, I just got a recording asking for my credit card number (again it did not specify which card) so I hung up. I googled the phone number and it was evidently a scammer who had hit a lot of people. My friend here at work also got a similar scam in an email. You have to be really careful anymore!

Our bank keeps close tabs on our account. If anything is remotely phishy they shut down the card effected.
I usually call in to the 800 line or go into the bank itself to get it all straightened out. I don't use our cell phone to conduct financial business in case it is ever lost or stolen. Although I still carry one of those old flip phones...lol

And the laptop never has any personal or financial information on it either. Since we take it with us when we travel and use the wifi provided by the hotel.

Yes...I don't much get into the banking stuff so I don't know the exact terms for online banking and credit cards..after all the years until we retired I did it...then I said it's yours...probably could figure it out if I had to..will cross that bridge...LOL

Its scary for anyone .. A friend's Dad was scammed into mailing 950.00 in cash so he could get a new car. WHAT ? The postmistress (its a small town) noticed what he was doing and immediately called my friend to tell him and notified the USPS security.
Sad ... people have to earn their monies the dishonest way in life !

I have had an account with Bank of America a very long time, twice now they have called me and informed me I would be getting a new debit card,as they felt like my account was being compromised. It was a legit call .(they asked for the last 4 numbers of my S S for verification purposes only) Someone tried to do a debit for $400.00 more than my balance was, so that was their clue.(I don't over draft my budget) I checked the number on my caller I D ,and it was a legit call. 2 days later,received my card in the mail. So many people here complain about BOA ,because they don't have free checking,and high interest rates. I'm not going to change banks from a bank that protects me like that.

YES!! We ALL have to remember that banks, and others with cards such as PayPal will NEVER ask for your password. YOU have a smart husband!!

Thank you for posting. I don't deal with Bank of America but, my son who's overseas does. There are so many scams today, you don't know whom to trust. Some of the scams (e-mail) I forwarded to my son and he forwardeds to the FBI. Even the phone calls I don't answer, they can leave me a message.

I appreciate you giving us all a heads up - I know I read about this stuff occasionally, but it's always a good reminder to try to stay safe!

Thank you for sharing your story with us. It's amazing how clever these hackers have become.

Always a good reminder, these types of things seem to be happening a lot more often...

Though if someone were to do this to me, I think they'd find themselves awfully disappointed and perhaps worse off than they were before :D

Thanks for the heads up!