A Public Service Announcement

Get rid of your debit cards.

That's my advice to everyone after our family has been violated a second time in two months. My card number was used only once for $400 at a department store in Mexico. I was inconvenienced as I had to go into my bank to sign a fraud statement. The money was put back into my account within 10 days. A new card number was sent to me. In the meantime, I used a credit card.

Bob just came back from a business trip to Asia. He spent his birthday in Vietnam. He came home Saturday morning pretty tired. Saturday afternoon he gets a phone call from our bank's fraud alert department. Someone in New York, in just three hours at Macy's department store, spent $2658 with Bob's debit card number! Yeah. That's a chunk of change. Right out of our account. As Becca said, someone's walking around with some nice shoes. They used the card 9 times in 3 hours. Happy Birthday Bob.

We feel violated. We feel mad. We don't feel safe. You work hard. You put your money in a bank where you think it's safe. This really stinks. Bob will be inconvenienced now. He'll have to call the bank on Monday. (Why do these things happen on a weekend when you can't get any help?) The bank won't be able to do anything till all the charges post. All NINE of them! He'll have to leave work to go sign a statement, and then we wait till the bank "investigates." Whatever that means. This is a lot of money, so it may be a criminal investigation, who knows?

Whatever, it really stinks.