Okay, so my bank account got defrauded today. Someone somehow managed to log into my account online, add 8 separate credit cards as bills to my vendor list, then made large payments to them. Turns out these cards are prepaid cards.
Luckily I was checking my account today (I check it daily), and noticed this. With my institution, you can reverse same day bill payments, so I just went and reversed the transactions, and changed my access code. The money went right back into my account.
Because I work for the same institution my account is with, I called up corporate security and reported it to them, and they will investigage.
Man I hate thieves. I hate them with a passion.
I hope they eventually get caught and get what's coming to them! The solace I get is knowing I stopped it in time and these bastards will show up at the stores trying to spend the money only to have their prepaid cards decline. Fuckers.
Suggestions for people looking to protect their accounts: 1) don't tell anyone, not even spouses, your passwords. If the financial institution finds out you did this, you can be on the hook for the defrauded money. Even when it is a joint account. A lot of times, the account agreement is between the bank and the individual, not you as a couple. So even though your accounts are joint, your passwords are not intended to be shared. 2) check your account regularly. 3) change your password regularly.
EDIT: According to corporate security, these types of fraud are rare. Normally this is associated with viruses or malware on the computer related to the browser you are using. It's a good idea to have your computer checked regularly with an anti-virus program.
