Incredible US banking ineptness

[jaywalker2]

I received a credit card statement in one of my secondary email accounts from Citibank. Now, I don't have a Citibank credit card, I have never applied for a Citibank credit card. The name on the email account is not my real name, it's basically an account I use when signing up for things on the web to avoid spam in my primary account.

 

But this credit card account was using my email address and the name on the email account. So as a courtesy, instead of just blocking it, I called up Citibank to report a fradulent credit card account. First of all, it took me several phone calls just to talk to a representative. Then it was not the right representative, I had to  be transferred, they transferred to the wrong place, I had to be transferred again, I was cut off. I had to call back.

 

Finally, I reached somebody who ostensibly could help me and I duly reported that my email address and the name on the account had been used fradulently to take out a credit card. Were they grateful? No. They insisted they needed my social security number and name, which I wasn't about to give them, of course. Instead, I told them that it was very easy to check whether this was a valid account. I gave them the last four numbers of the credit card account, the name on the account, the date the person became a card member. And I told them all they had to do was check the social security number on the application against the name. They can't possibly match.

 

The representative, it sounded like a Filipino call center, kept giving me an argument, so I finally told them they could investigate or not as they pleased, but I wasn't going to be associated with a fradulent account and that I would block any further message.

 

It's just amazing to me the hoops somebody who lives overseas has to jump through in order to open a bank account, keep it open, or get a credit card or do anything else. I tried to open an account at Ally Bank, for instance, and they rejected me because I didn't have enough of a US credit history even though I gave a US adsdress. And yet ithese banks seem to be handing out credit cards with no credit checks at all.  And even when you report a fraud, they act like they don't care.

 

Well, that's my rant of the day.
 

[1FinickyOne]

Sounds like business as usual... 

 

But, not at my bank. I have had the same account for over 20 years and the management knows me and the account is locked down other than our regular transactions. 

[gamb00ler]

It seems likely that the website/company where you supplied that email address was hacked.  Hackers then sent you a phishing email to that account trying to get more data from you.

 

It's quite likely Citibank was just chosen at random by the hackers and the bank knows nothing about that email, credit card or that fictitious name you supplied.

Edited yesterday at 04:26 AM by gamb00ler

[jaywalker2]

No, citibank confirmed it was a real account. They said they couldn't close it without proof it was fake.

[Everyman]

21 hours ago, jaywalker2 said:

No, citibank confirmed it was a real account. They said they couldn't close it without proof it was fake.

 

I have several real Citibank credit cards and accounts. Nine out of ten representatives in those Filipino call centers are useless idiots. They know nothing, have no power or common sense and just waste your time. 

[BigStar]

On 10/1/2024 at 8:55 AM, jaywalker2 said:

It's just amazing to me the hoops somebody who lives overseas has to jump through in order to open a bank account, keep it open, or get a credit card or do anything else.

 

Oh, just close the account and use a Thai account. I never have any trouble w/ my Thai banks or Thai credit card. 🙂 

Edited 7 hours ago by BigStar

[jaywalker2]

1 hour ago, BigStar said:

 

Oh, just close the account and use a Thai account. I never have any trouble w/ my Thai banks or Thai credit card. 🙂 

You've brought all your money over to Thailand?

[BigStar]

24 minutes ago, jaywalker2 said:

You've brought all your money over to Thailand?

 

It's been happy here for quite some time. You may report me to our ANF Poster Banking Regulators. 

[JackGats]

Count yourself lucky not to be from the EU. At least as a US citizen you can still open a US bank account while living in Thailand. Once EU expats lose their EU accounts, there's nothing for it but to bank only in Asia (how do you transfer an EU stock portfolio to Thailand?), or go back and live in the EU for one fiscal year in order to open <deleted>load of new accounts before becoming moving out again.

 

Yes, setting up call-centers manned with employees who know little and can do little is the new way for bank to cut costs these days. The day crypto takes over and all banks vanish will be a victory for mankind. I'm not even a crypto investor, I missed that band-wagon, but I now understand why long term there's no alternative to crypto.

[bubblegum]

14 minutes ago, JackGats said:

Count yourself lucky not to be from the EU. At least as a US citizen you can still open a US bank account while living in Thailand. Once EU expats lose their EU accounts, there's nothing for it but to bank only in Asia (how do you transfer an EU stock portfolio to Thailand?), or go back and live in the EU for one fiscal year in order to open <deleted>load of new accounts before becoming moving out again.

 

Yes, setting up call-centers manned with employees who know little and can do little is the new way for bank to cut costs these days. The day crypto takes over and all banks vanish will be a victory for mankind. I'm not even a crypto investor, I missed that band-wagon, but I now understand why long term there's no alternative to crypto.

Just open a Wise account, it's in Belgium with a Belgium bank nr. and IBAN.

[gamb00ler]

On 10/1/2024 at 2:07 PM, jaywalker2 said:

No, citibank confirmed it was a real account. They said they couldn't close it without proof it was fake.

I think it likely that there is some miscommunication between you and the Citibank customer service representative.

 

How likely is it for Citibank to issue a credit card in a fake name (without documentation) that presumably has no credit history?