Amex Fraud Protection - pretty amazing

[volcs0]

My card was declined last night when I tried to use it at an online merchant. This morning, I got a call from Amex telling me to call them back. At first, I was annoyed that they blocked my transaction, but once I got on the phone with the fraud guy, I was pretty impressed.

He asked if I used my card to set up a new iTunes account on Saturday. I told him the account we have is associated with the card, but that we did not set up a new account. He said the person setting up the new account used the incorrect contact info. I asked if it was possible that it was one of my kids, etc. And he was very emphatic - he said, we can tell from where this came from, from the IP, etc. that it was not you. I asked him if there were other transactions I should worry about, - and this is the creepy part - he said, "No, they all look good, they are retailers that make sense for you, and the shipping addresses all match up." He made is sound like they know more about my shopping habits than I do.

In any case, they will get me my new card by tomorrow, and there doesn't appear to be any damage. Now I just need to go through and figure out all the auto-bill pays I have set up (New York Times, ComEd, Comcast, T-Mobile, etc.).

They other funny part was when I asked when I would get the new card. He said, "Oh, you'll have it by tomorrow. We want you using your card for the holidays. You are spending up to $X per month, so we want you to keep using the card."

[kj4btkljv]

volcs0 wrote:
I asked him if there were other transactions I should worry about, - and this is the creepy part - he said, "No, they all look good, they are retailers that make sense for you, and the shipping addresses all match up." He made is sound like they know more about my shopping habits than I do.

I would bet good money that they profile every card holder like this. When something doesn't look right, then a real person probably steps in and takes a better look.

Jeff

[graylocks]

i've had Citibank call me twice in the last 20 years.

once to inquire if it really was me making charging throughout the southwest within a few days when i had a california billing address. yes, it was - i was in the process of moving to georgia.

the second time was to check if i really was trying to buy thousands of dollars of audio equipment. no! account closed, new card issued.

both time i was impressed and thanked them for their algorithms.

[GGD]

I wonder how they know what IP address was used for a transaction with the iTunes store. Is that sort of stuff routinely shared between a merchant and CC company?

[Tofer]

I've been impressed with Amex before. Once, when I was on a trip to Seattle, I realized that I had lost my ATM card, and I had no cash. I called up Amex and asked if they could somehow give me a cash advance without my PIN, and they said, "Yup. We can do a 1-time cash advance of up to $500; we just need some information, and you can't re-use this service for a month." I got out the money and was in good shape (until all my luggage got stolen from my car a few days later in Vancouver, but that's a different story).

[michaelb]

I always use my AMEX, and they have impressed me too over these past 20+ years. I got a call once like that about a transaction they didn't approve, and have once or twice called me about one that I did make.

[Fritz]

Amex kicks butt!
Everything else is just mock turtle.
I've had calls from Amex of the same type and 9AM delivery of a new card at a hotel I was staying in.
Disputes, NP.
Late fees, if I ever hit one, it's always been rolled back.
Last year, in Vietnam & Laos, MasterCard & VISA, terrible pita.
Amex was smooth sailing.
But I have to have alts for the places that don't take Amex.

[tronnei]

GGD wrote:
I wonder how they know what IP address was used for a transaction with the iTunes store. Is that sort of stuff routinely shared between a merchant and CC company?

Yes. I'm a webmaster for a site that accepts credit cards. I see the IP address of all who use their card on our site.

[dk62]

Keep in mind, they are protecting themselves and the merchants more than you. An inappropriately declined transaction (particularly if you are abroad) can be much more of a pain for you than fraudulent ones for which you are ultimately not responsible.

[GGD]

tronnei wrote:
[quote=GGD]
I wonder how they know what IP address was used for a transaction with the iTunes store. Is that sort of stuff routinely shared between a merchant and CC company?

Yes. I'm a webmaster for a site that accepts credit cards. I see the IP address of all who use their card on our site.
I realize that your site will see the IP, but I'm more curious about how AMEX sees IP info that your site collects. Do you pass it along to them on a regular basis?