I bought what???

December 4, 2007 5:29 PM

Someone bought a telescope in my name on Nov 7th. That's all I know. How do I protect myself even though I don't know what store, or more importantly, what method of "payment" was used to complete the transaction?

Recently in the mail I received a United Airlines Mileage Plus card addressed to a Dr. JakeLL. I'm not a doctor. My name is not at all common. At first I thought it could be a solicitation, but I decided to call the customer service number to confirm.

It seems however, that my membership was through an auto enrollment program because I seemed to have purchased a telescope. I did not buy a telescope. I asked for more information and to talk to a supervisor, but they had no more information than the product purchased and the date (Nov 7th). I would have tried demanding my way up the authority tree, but it became clear that I had reached only a calling center, and it seemed they genuinely had no additional information for me.

I'm not exactly sure where to go from here. Nothing is on my credit report considering the fact that the purchase isn't even a month old. I don't know where the purchase was made so I can't call the store. Because I can't call the store, I can't find out the method of payment. Because I can't find out the method of payment, I can't call to have whatever account they used closed. They're must be an option that I'm simply unaware of.

If you have any ideas that will help me protect myself, or that will help me discover more information so I can do something now, it would be greatly appreciated!

posted by JakeLL to work & money (11 comments total)

I don't understand. Can't you look through your purchase history on all of your credit / debit cards / bank statements?
posted by aubilenon at 5:37 PM on December 4, 2007

Is it possible someone you know bought you a telescope and wherever they bought it from auto-enrolled the receiving name and address in the mileage club? Is anybody likely to have bought you a telescope?
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 5:37 PM on December 4, 2007

Aubilenon

I have checked and there's nothing on them. I am however, concerned that someone has my personal information, and set up an account in my name, or something to that affect.
posted by JakeLL at 5:43 PM on December 4, 2007

How sure are you that what you received was truly from United Airlines, and that the number you called wasn't actually a scam? Did you give "United Airlines" any personal identification information? Did they ask for any? What information of yours did they already have when you called (i.e. information that you did not give them on the phone)?

I suspect there is more here than meets the eye.

I suggest that you look up the real United Airlines and call them. Do not give them any personal identifying information. Find out if what you received in the mail is legit. And go from there.
posted by The World Famous at 5:47 PM on December 4, 2007

It was United Airlines. The only info they asked for were the membership card # and my zipcode. At no point did they ask for more information.
posted by JakeLL at 6:02 PM on December 4, 2007

You should sign up for a credit monitoring service or even a credit lock (where you'd need a password to open any new accounts). That way you prevent any further damage to your credit.

Also, just thinking out loud, could someone you know have bought you a telescope as a christmas present and given your name/address for registering the product? They may not have known that this will result in auto enrollment.

Just a thought.
posted by special-k at 6:13 PM on December 4, 2007

As much as I would love a telescope one day, my living situation clearly wouldn't be able to take advantage of such a thing. Plus I believe that would be clear to anyone who I would know well enough to get this kind of gift from.

On top of that, because of how costly a telescope would be, it would be very unlikely that anyone beyond my family could afford to get me one. The thing is though, that my family doesn't really keep holiday presents secret. (As in no attempt is made and I already know what I'll be getting.)
posted by JakeLL at 6:22 PM on December 4, 2007

AFAIK from talking to my mother, who has one, a UA Mileage Plus card IS a credit card. Assuming this is true, it appears someone opened a credit account using your name and address, somehow, and bought themselves a telescope. Eventually you'll get a bill bearing the same number that's on the card you received in the mail. That's my best guess based on incomplete information and I hope it turns out to be helpful. Best of luck to you.
posted by JimN2TAW at 7:32 PM on December 4, 2007

It sounds like a United Airlines Mileage Plus Card is a visa?

Did you call 1-800-537-7783 or a different number (source)
posted by Pants! at 8:21 PM on December 4, 2007

I'm still thinking The World Famous is onto something. I find it hard to believe that they would provide you no additional information.

And it seems odd that they'd know what you bought: that's the one piece of information a credit card company wouldn't have. They should have been able to say, "Yes, it shows you spend $249.99 at Sharper Image," but not know what you bought. Unless the purchase was actually from United Airlines.

It looks to me, as N2TAW says, that it's a credit card. In which case, the contact information here may be helpful. When it comes to fraudulent charges, it's reprehensible that they wouldn't have someone helpful to talk to.

This type of scam isn't unprecedented. A friend recently got a call that her student loan was canceled. She was aghast, and readily gave them her financial information without thinking.

A quick (but not entirely dependable!) litmus test would be to call the number you called before, from a different phone number (just in case), and go through the thing again, but intentionally transpose a few digits on your card. If they're fishing for numbers, they'd most likely be unaware that you were giving them a phony number. (But the converse isn't true: if they call you on it, it doesn't guarantee that they're legitimate.) You might munge other details to see how they react: you're calling because you received a notice about your recent purchase of a trumpet that you believe is fraudulent.

Even if you're not being scammed, you're getting abysmal customer service. You're calling to report a fraudulent charge for which you shouldn't be liable. Call again, but call the number on your card, or the number on the site I link to. And if you get a crappy call center again, try to work your way up the chain, and don't take no for an answer. This should be their problem, not yours.
posted by fogster at 8:23 PM on December 4, 2007

I have a United Airlines Mileage Plus card, and whenever I've called customer service I've had MUCH better, more helpful experiences, although outside of regular business hours the managers and fixer-people are not on staff. Did you call during the day?

In any case, you should run a credit check and put a fraud alert on your credit accounts - here's how.
posted by croutonsupafreak at 7:32 AM on December 5, 2007