Community Chat

[Carmie]

@CalmHeart   Now I am confused.  Why would a scammer send an envelope of junk?  What purpose does that serve?

If someone had passwords, SS #, or bank account info and was up to no good, they could just do whatever bad deed they had in mind without sending anything.

Sending junk in the mail...how will this help them?

BTW, my husband has no passwords for banks or credit cards.  He's old fashioned and does all banking in person and still sends out checks.  He doesn't pay bills online.

[RescueLover]

@Carmie

I think mostly the scammer wanted you to scan the QR code on the package so that they could download malicious software and or even steal personal information right from your phone.


And We should always monitor our credit to be sure unauthorized accounts weren’t open in our names.

Your name and address combined with other breached data allows the scammer to open up Fraudulent accounts.

[nickpenny]

It's called "Brushing". Usps has articles on it. If you get a package your not expecting and it also comes with a QR code inside, be aware, dont just scan random QR codes, you could get Malware on your phone. It's sad there are so many scams and scammers out there taking g advantage of peoples hard earned money.Have a great father's day coming up everyone. All be safe out there. 🙂

[morganjen]

That happened to me last year. Inside was balloons. Someone had hacked my credit card. Check your accounts carefully.

Here's my post from last year:

https://community.qvc.com/t5/Community-Chat/Credit-Card-Fraud-Ugh/m-p/8865523#M2131073

[San Antonio Gal]

---

@morganjen wrote:

That happened to me last year. Inside was balloons. Someone had hacked my credit card. Check your accounts carefully.

Here's my post from last year:

https://community.qvc.com/t5/Community-Chat/Credit-Card-Fraud-Ugh/m-p/8865523#M2131073

---

What was the outcome of your situation from last year @morganjen ?

[CalmHeart]

---

@Carmie wrote:

@CalmHeart   Now I am confused.  Why would a scammer send an envelope of junk?  What purpose does that serve?

If someone had passwords, SS #, or bank account info and was up to no good, they could just do whatever bad deed they had in mind without sending anything.

Sending junk in the mail...how will this help them?

BTW, my husband has no passwords for banks or credit cards.  He's old fashioned and does all banking in person and still sends out checks.  He doesn't pay bills online.

---

If I hadn't investigated fraud for 20 years, I would not get it either.  I could write a book to try to explain it. 

Fraud is so widespread and so easy because we don't think like they do.  

It's not always random. People get picked for a reason.

• Did some of your info get into the dark web?
• Was a company, medical provider, business, government, etc have your information and get hacked or have a data leak?  
• Do you already have a virus in your device? Many don't interfere with what people usually do on them.
• Did someone stumble on your info online?
• The list of possibilities is endless. 

I received a letter in June about a data leak with my info that occurred in March.

• I heard it on the news in March but had never done business with them so didn't pay much attention. BUT!  A business I used did use them so my info was leaked.
• How much damage could a scammer have done to me in 3 months! It's good that I closely monitor everything. 

The problem is what people do after receiving the package.  We are a curious bunch and we don't want to pay for something we didn't order. People call, scan some code, or whatever. 

Scanning a code:  The scammer is in and may be planting a virus you'll never see that will gather passwords, data, etc.

Phone call:

• As always, you confirm all your information.
• They mention the last four digits of a credit card and that you were charged. The last 4 digits are not encrypted like the rest of the card number when you shop online so they aren't difficult to obtain and the first to show up in leaked data. 
• They need the entire number to give you a so-called refund. Most people think if they have the last 4 digits, it's safe to give the whole card number.

This is the tip of the tip of the iceberg. All I can say is people need to be less trusting.

[morganjen]

@San Antonio Gal @ I contacted both my credit card company and Walmart. The credit card company issued me another card, since someone had hacked my card. They did reverse the two charges that occured, plus one for $100+ that showed up pending. Walmart said it showed the purchaser's name was "Honey Berry," and they were located in the U.S. Would not give me any other information. They claimed they would look into it to see why I was being sent the items. Never heard back from them.