Contact Simple fraud dept

July 14, 2020 5:49 PM

Just that. Someone I know has an account with Simple. They were told by customer service that they'll be contacted by the fraud dept in 2 weeks and they will not provide contact info directly to the fraud department. This person can't wait that long. We've searched the website and can't find anything. Does anyone know how to reach Simple's fraud department? Thank you.
posted by smashface to Work & Money (5 answers total)

It's a little weird that there is so little contact info on Simple's website. It always raises a red flag when someone starts a story with "My bank called (and gave very vague info) about fraud..." The few times that I have gotten a call from my bank, I say "Okay, thanks for calling, I'm going to hang up now and call the number on the back of my card."

That's where I'd start. Call the number on the back of the debit and/or credit card, and go from there. Caller ID can be spoofed; I would never dive into account detail (or worse, answer security questions!) on an incoming phone call.
posted by xedrik at 6:52 AM on July 15, 2020 [1 favorite]

That already sounds broken. I would review what's transpired to make sure that your acquaintance was talking to Simple to begin with.

In general, fraud departments make themselves relatively easy to reach because the only way a consumer can verify that they're talking to Simple is to initiate the call through a known number. Try calling Simple customer service and asking for the fraud department.

If your acquaintance was contacted by "Simple", whether via e-mail or by phone, even if the e-mail or phone number seemed legit, you need to treat this with extreme skepticism, and start driving the issue from their end. Get in contact with Simple customer service through a number listed on the website or paperwork, and proceed forward from there. It's quite possibly a legitimate issue, but it is also quite possibly some clever attempt by nefarious types to gain access to accounts.

If Simple truly won't put your acquaintance through to their fraud department, it is a good time to look at a real bank, and tell them why.
posted by jgreco at 6:56 AM on July 15, 2020

Could you send them a message to request the fraud dept to contact you earlier than the 2 weeks?

In the Simple app, there's a Support link on the sidebar, click Contact Us, there's a phone number and a link to message them. "Disputes and Fraud" is one of the issues you can select when messaging
posted by kristicat at 7:31 AM on July 15, 2020

Response by poster: I should have noted, the card was locked due to friend's error. They forgot to transfer from their savings to their checking, and swiped the checking card multiple times, and the card was locked by Simple. They've submitted multiple requests and have made multiple calls and have been told that they just have to wait.
posted by smashface at 9:12 AM on July 15, 2020

The fraud department usually works covertly so there isnt any holes in the phone line security. If your friend has been a victim of fraud the department is needing 1-2 weeks to investigate the activity associated with the suspected fraudster. Your friend should file police reports, monitor their credit report change bank cards and just wait out the call. It wont help him to not know the most information and that's what the fraud team is helping him do.
posted by The_imp_inimpossible at 9:55 AM on July 15, 2020