Although this doesn't affect me, thanks so much for the heads-up! Your concern may help keep some of this activity to a minimum.

I hope it all turns out ok for you, and fast, too.

It could be from any usage of your debit card. Any usage of it, even in a store, is electronic or "on-line".

Just an f.y.i.

Well, I don't use the debit card in stores. The only time I ever use it is at my bank's ATM to get cash, or for shopping on the web, which narrows down the cause quite a bit to the only two recent instances where I used it for online shopping.

Good luck Allison. I hope nothing bad comes of it. And thanks for the warning.

Karen

OT a bit but:

Recently in Denver metro, a skimmer was attached to a bank's atm. The skimmer looked just like the card swiper insert and was placed in front of it. A card went through the skimmer into the real atm reader. People used the atm, thinking their bank was secure, for weeks until the skimmer started to detach. Only then did it raise concern.

Nice security - huh?

FYI: there is a 1968 federal law that makes credit cards, strictly speaking, a bit safer than debit cards should push come to shove.

Good luck! I hope that's the end of it for you!

That is not good news!

Alberta

I like Paypal!!

I talked with my bank manager at length about this. He said the risk is the same with credit cards or debit cards. With both you are liable for $50 if they're lost or stolen. No difference with credit/debit cards. This was last summer.

Karen

Karen, your banker is right about the $50.00 limit. However and this is a biggie! With a debit card, the hacker can drain your checking account before you know it. It could take days or even weeks for the bank to get it all sorted out and replace the lost cash.

With a credit card, you just don't pay it, or pay it last until it's sorted out. At least the last 20 checks you wrote will still be honored! And you can get cash and still buy food!!

Using a debit card that is attached to your main checking account can be a dangerous thing on-line. Go with a Paypal account, it's safe and it's free to set it up!

Paypal has been hacked too nancy. More than once. It has also been associated with viruses and other compromises. Look it up.

I don't use my debit card for purchaces though. It's just to withdraw cash from the cash machine.

Karen

I've worked bank fraud for 25 years. Your card can be hacked virtually anywhere... could be a data access on the part of the merchant, someone actually swiping your card into an encoding machine, a keystroke logger on your computer. Personally, I use paypal, but I have paypal linked to a credit card, not my bank account. I have greater dispute privileges that way. Nancy_Drew is right, though, the danger with the debit card is your checking account has the potential to be drained quickly, and the banks aren't necessarily quick about putting the money back in.

Dawiff, your suspicions may very well be correct, but you should make sure you don't have any malware on your computer..

Bank of America has a Shop Safe program that is free to use if you have a credit card with them. My DH and I use this anytime we purchase things online. Basically how it works is it creates a fictitious credit card number that is linked to your real credit card number. You never have to give out your real credit card number and you can even set a dollar limit. So if I am spending $20 I will give the card a maximum spending limit of $25. Definitely has worked well for us.

-StLGirl

Lynnem, I wondered about the malware thing actually. DH, who is a computer nerd, says that is unlikely for two reasons: 1.) we have a firewall, and 2.) it's a Mac. Macs are supposed to be much less susceptible to malware/spyware.

Stlgirl, Thanks for telling me about the Shop Safe program. But we don't use either Visa or Mastercard. Many years ago we fell into the credit card trap, managed to get out, and have never gotten another one.