Check-altering criminal mastermind Frank Abagnale has five ways to lockdown your checking account and secure your identity. Check fraud isn’t an anachronistic threat like Communism. Determined thieves can easily use your checks to steal your cash and your identity. Here’s how to stop them…
Man Arrested For Trying To Pass A $360 Billion Check
By May 1, 2008
Meet Charles Ray Fuller, 21, of Crowley, TX. He was arrested on April 22 after allegedly trying to pass a check for $360 billion at a Forth Worth Chase bank.
Charles Schwab Sends You A Letter To Let You Know That Your $0.01 Check Expired
By April 1, 2008
Commenter annelise13 writes:
My husband and I recently received a letter from Charles Schwab about our account. It refers to a check they sent us last year for the grand total of $.01. Yes, that’s one cent. A single penny. I never cashed the check, having found it funny that they wasted a stamp to send us such a tiny amount. I tacked it up on the fridge for a few months to amuse myself, and eventually tossed it.
Bank Of America Refunds $325 In Overdraft Fees To Customer Who Was On Cruise
By March 12, 2008
Don’t say we never printed anything nice about you, BoA. One of your customers just had an experience with you that—despite still having an overdraft fee of $20 to pay—has left her feeling pretty good about you.
"I Lost My Deposit Slip, And PNC Says There's No Record Of My Deposit"
By March 8, 2008
Nicholas wrote in with a scary problem: his paycheck, which he deposited at his local branch of PNC on Saturday, never showed up in his bank account. The teller seemed to have difficulty processing the deposit, but the slip he gave to Nicholas showed the check had been processed.
Would You Scan Checks At Home For Deposit?
By February 9, 2008
Banks have hesitated to adopt technology that would let us scan paper checks at home for deposit. The Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act allows banks to exchange electronic images instead of paper checks, but USAA, a credit union associated with the military, is currently the only bank to offer customers a check scanning option. Sure, it’s easy enough to stand on line for a teller or wait for an ATM, but we fear sunshine and people and prefer to stay indoors, thank you. Assuming it was free, is this something you would use if it was offered by your bank? Vote in our poll, after the jump.
USAA Customer? Make Sure Your Checks Haven't Been Cashed Twice
By February 8, 2008
This morning, Mary logged onto her USAA bank account to check her balance and was surprised to find that her rent check had been cashed twice while she was asleep. She was eventually able to get through to a human and get the problem addressed, but it wasn’t easy. And she may not have been the only one affected.
Creditors Can Steal Your Social Security Check Right Out Of Your Bank Account
By January 6, 2008
Nathalie Martin’s elderly cousin had her social security check garnished straight from her bank account by a collections agency. Apparently, most banks skip over the section of federal law that protects social security and other public benefits from creditors. Good thing Nathalie is a bankruptcy scholar and knows how to fight the sleazy debt collectors.
Chase: By Cashing This $9.25 Check You Agree To Give Us $59.99
By January 4, 2008
Reader Aaron writes in to complain about a “scam” that he can’t believe is legal. Many of you know about this little marketing tactic, and we’ve written about it before, but some of you probably do not.
Depositing Checks In A Bank Of America ATM Is A Huge Pain In The Butt
By December 10, 2007
I thought I’d give your readers a heads-up on how much Bank of America sucks, and why you should make all deposits to a bank teller and never, ever at the ATM.
Check Fraud Up As High Quality Printer Prices Drop
By August 29, 2007
With high-quality printers are widely available at the consumer level, check counterfeiting is on the rise, usually in conjunction with “advance fee scams,” where someone is tricked into cashing an overpayment of some sort and then sending the remainder to another address, reports the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Then by some machination or another, the overpayment turns out to be fraudulent and the scammer vanishes. The image above shows various security features to look for when evaluating a check’s verisimilitude.
Budget: Cash This Check And You'll Be Enrolled In A Service You Don't Want
By July 10, 2007
Reader Larry writes in with a complaint about a commonly used “scam.” We call it a “scam” because we believe it’s misleading and designed to take advantage of people who do not read things carefully, but you judge for yourself. Here’s how it works:
How Frank Abagnale Protects Himself From Identity Theft
By July 4, 2007
How does Frank Abagnale, an infamous check forger in the 60′s, protect himself from modern day identity thieves?
Wachovia Demonstrates How To Lose A Customer
By June 5, 2007
We have more than a passing interest in customer service over here, so it always amuses us when a company loses a customer simply because they’re too stubborn to apologize for messing up.
Check Fraud Is Alive, Well, And Preventable
By May 5, 2007
Old-fashioned check fraud is coming back into style as banks tailor their anti-fraud efforts to safeguard internet commerce. Check fraud cost banks almost $1 billion in 2005. The LA Times took the time to test the effectiveness of one resurgent scheme, check washing:
In a test at The Times — following directions supplied by a local security expert — the writing in the “Pay to the Order,” “Dollars” and signature areas on a check was dissolved in less than 15 minutes. Printed information — including the bank routing numbers and the name and address of the account holder — remained intact.
Walgreens Apologizes For Insinuating Reader Might Be Committing Check Fraud
By April 11, 2007
Reader DudeAsInCool got an apology from Walgreens and a $20 coupon after submitting his complaint over the hassle he was put through when trying to pay with a check. Somehow the who/what/when/why/where/how of his purchase tripped Walgreen’s check verification service, Certegy, and he had to go through a ridiculous phone call in order to get his check cleared.
AT&T Randomly Sends You A Check For $2.82
By March 29, 2007
The woman at AT&T told me I received it because AT&T no longer provided telecom service to the Penn State campus – where I haven’t lived for 8 years (because I am 100). I’m not sure what went down so that they’re sending me almost three whole dollars, but it’s three dollars I didn’t have this morning, so… Aces.
Kate tells us she’s very excited to cash her check so she can buy “IN TOUCH and some gum.” She also notes that the check says “CON REFUNDS,” which we feel is heartwarmingly honest of AT&T —MEGHANN MARCO
