|
Living with credit (248)
|
New, interesting products (69)
|
Research, regulation, industry reports (177)
|
Rewards (23)
|
Protecting yourself (113)
|
The fine print (36)
|
Credit card miscellany (280)
Jeremy SimonLooking for stories about credit scoring, economic data or card crime? Then keep an eye out for my articles and blogs, which frequently focus on those topics. I've been with CreditCards.com since June 2006, working as a staff reporter and steadily increasing my knowledge of payment cards and personal debt. I've learned a lot and continue to do so, having only gotten myself a credit card a few years back. A Texas transplant enjoying live music, barbecue and everything else Austin has to offer, I spent most of my formative years in the Northeast. I graduated with an English degree from Vassar College, before taking a job with Thomson Financial in New York City, where I wrote about stock markets from the same building where Bud Fox worked in "Wall Street" (he strolled through the lobby, that is). Since moving to Austin, my writing career has included an internship in the editorial department of Texas Monthly and the chance to tackle freelance assignments for several local publications. Writing for a consumer audience is key to what I do -- so don't hesitate to offer any suggestions or thoughts you may have!
It seems there isn't much nowadays that can't be charged to your credit card. While the ability to put nearly everything on plastic and (potentially) pay for it tomorrow might be decried by consumer advocates, it makes for an edition of Criminal Charges that includes crooks who put purchases from tattoos to Gulfstream jets on stolen plastic.
The economy may be in the toilet, but you'd never know it from observing the lifestyles led by the fraudsters in this week's edition of Criminal Charges. The women profiled used other people's plastic to fund lifestyles that included spas, designer clothing and cosmetic surgery.
The small size and convenient shape of a credit card hasn't gone unnoticed, with inventors and innovators working to shrink various devices down to pocket-sized perfection. Consider the following wallet-ready calculators, Best Buy gift cards with built-in audio speakers and PIN pads -- all resembling plastic payment cards and all easily portable.
Any common criminal can snatch a credit card and attempt to make some charges, but it takes a special breed of fraudster to hatch a plan and then follow through with it. For this week's edition of Criminal Charges, I've pulled together several tales of organized criminal activity that involved multiple individuals who orchestrated more complex attempts to defraud.
After getting my landline installed, I found another "benefit" that I hadn't expected -- becoming popular with debt collectors.
The stories of espionage and international intrigue in this week's abbreviated Criminal Charges round up would make James Bond proud. We've got a former spy who decided to let the CIA pay for his luxurious lifestyle, as well as a international murder in Dubai where a credit card may help identify the killer.
An alleged criminal trio were arrested last Monday for their participation in a major theft ring. According to a press release from the Leon County Sheriff's Office, the three men used credit card information stolen from the records of New Jersey-based Heartland Processing Center to electronically encode Visa gift cards. Police say those gift cards were then used to make fraudulent purchases at local businesses, including several Tallahassee Wal-Marts, with the merchandise then sold for cash.
The following credit card criminals were most certainly doing some bad business.
Check out the Carnival of Personal Finance -- Wizard of Oz edition. Among the personal finance blog posts rounded up there, carnival host Dollar Frugal has seen fit to include my Criminal Charges post involving tales of criminals caught on videotape.
This week's assortment of crime stories shares one thing in common -- credit card thieves who were caught on camera attempting to use stolen plastic. Aside from that shared element, we've got some unusual items that include an ice pick, a thief who tried to use a car as a deadly weapon and marijuana and psychedelic mushrooms.
Head over to U.S. News & World Report's Alpha Consumer blog to read my guest post, "The Rise of Prepaid Credit Cards." Also, be sure to stop by credit and bankruptcy blog Credit Slips for a post that spotlights my article on bankruptcy risk scores.
Take a look at the The Carnival of Finance, Investments and Trading edition for Jan. 25, 2009, which includes my Criminal Charges blog post on strippers and credit card crimes.
Sorting through stacks of stories that highlight criminals' use of credit cards gives you a sunny outlook on life that can be summed up in a single phrase: trust no one.
This edition of Criminal Charges looks to the alphabet for some inspiration. With stories involving fish, firemen and country club thieves yelling, "Fore!," you might say this week's collection of payment card crime stories is brought to you by the letter "F."
A quick word of thanks goes out to the Fraud Files blog for including my post, Criminal Charges: Volume XXII -- Fraudsters on holiday, in the January 12 edition of the Carnival of Fraud.
The decision to focus this week's edition of Criminal Charges on credit card violations and striptease artists is purely based on concern for our shared economic troubles.
The credit card crime stories assembled for this week's edition of Criminal Charges show that when fraudsters take a trip, it is often at the expenses of law-abiding cardholders. Proving that point, we have a trio of Malaysians who ran up some major fraudulent charges while vacationing in New Zealand, a Massachusetts travel agency that scammed its customers and a Vermont thief who proved just how cold ski vacations can be.
It's been an eventful first year for Criminal Charges, my weekly look at what happens when criminals and credit cards meet. To celebrate the impending end of 2008, I've decided to put together a look back at some of the unusual and audacious crimes involving plastic that have been included in this blog column so far. Hope you enjoy re-connecting with some of our favorite fraudsters.
The credit card thieves featured in this week's collection of items wanted a taste of the good life, they just didn't want to pay for it themselves. From a Texas customer service representative to a Louisiana mayor to a Pennsylvania credit union manager, the stories below show that all sorts of criminals see stolen plastic as a way to live it up at someone else's expense.
This week's credit card crimes once again prove that the truth is often stranger than fiction. We've got a coroner's office employee who used a dead man's credit card at the local strip club, a cross-dressing purse snatcher and a con-artist who enjoyed the high life on his boyfriend's corporate card.
It this edition of Criminal Charges, we've got a collection of female credit card criminals, including fraudsters who stole credit cards by drugging men and abducting them from bars, a Spandex-clad thief who enjoyed the plastic fruits of a car burglary, a worker who swiped money from a sewer authority and a mother who falsely opened a credit card in her son's name while he was serving in the Marines.
For those of you interested in the connection between plastic and terrorism, head on over to U.S. News & World Report's Alpha Consumer blog, which has kindly featured my guest blog post, "Why the Mumbai terrorists used credit cards."
A few weeks ago in the Criminal Charges column, I brought you credit card crimes related to the ordinary staples of life -- cigarettes, bread and booze. This week's batch of alleged credit card crooks has in common the exotic, including a Mustang, chartered planes, wine and roses.
This week's edition of my Criminal Charges series (Vol. XVII, for those of you keeping track) appears as a guest post on the Consumerism Commentary blog. Thanks, Flexo!
Welcome to another edition of Criminal Charges, my ongoing look at illegal activities involving plastic. Today's round-up of credit card crimes is all over the place: we've got fraudsters at work and play, illegal plastic payments for a puppy and parking tickets and an ATM thief who decided to stop at Waffle House.
Whether you luxuriate in first class or are crammed in coach eating peanuts, Taking Charge would like to welcome you aboard the Money Hacks Carnival No. 38 -- the Aviation Month edition.
This week's assortment of credit card crime and fraud items shows that thieves may also focus on staple items in hard economic times, with stories that include crimes targeting supermarkets, a tobacco store and vending machines.
|
About
They're the pieces of plastic we love, and love to hate. Get the latest news, tips, research and more from the CreditCards.com staff.
Archives
All Blogs
Filter by: This month
TagsOther Voices and Blogs
Useful LinksSubscribe to Taking Charge |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Secure SSL Technology |
|
|||||||||||
