Discover Card Security Breach?

Hi Folks,

I found this site doing a google search based on something that happened yesterday and thought I'd post to see if anyone else experienced the same thing recently.

I got a call from Discover Card Security Services yesterday telling me that they would have to close my account and re-issue a new card. I asked them if they saw any suspicious activity that warranted this and the CSR was very evasive on my direct questions as to fraudlent charges and/or authorizations. The only thing she would say is that they stumbled onto something that required me to have a new card. What really set off redflags in my head was that I had to re-register for online access with the new card and she explicitly told me that I needed to chose a different username and password.

Being the fatalist that I am, I am suspecting that there was a security breach at DiscoverCard.com that led to the unintended release of both account information as well as online profile information. While I pushed for more details, the CSR was not very forthcoming. I can only further suspect that they are not officially admitting anything to prevent having to offer up additional credit monitoring for free to affected cardholders.

Has anyone else gotten a call from Discover recently? I've been a Discover cardholder for 13 years had to get a new card once before about 3 years ago when suspicious authorizations happened but this one sounds different.

Any additional news or insight?

[Jeanie]

I myself have never experienced this and I hope someone will read your post and give you some insight. I will keep my eyes open for additional info though..

[Jeremy]

My guess is that phone call was an identity theft scam attempt, not actually from Discover. Did they want you to go to a special url to sign up?

Having worked in the IT department of a bank where customer data was compromised before, I know first hand this isn't the kind of thing they can just sweep under the rug, nor do they want to.

The word is going to get out if customer data was compromised and believe me, they want to be the ones who break and control the story. Having it be discovered later would be devastating to them. There is nothing on any of the news sites about this, so to me at least it has scam written all over it.

I would tend to agree with you but it was the standard 2 call process. They left a message to call their security department and I call Discover Card directly. Once I entered my identifying details (last 4 digits of card, last 4 digits of social, billing zip code) I was immediately transferred to the Fraud department where they told me that I would get new cards via courier and that I needed to re-register them with a new online profile that should be different than my old one. I did not provide any provide any details like my full social or the CVV on the card.

There should be a DHL package on my front porch with 2 new cards this evening so I will double check and let you guys know.

I wholeheartedly agree that this would be a PR nightmare if they did not openly disclose fully and swiftly. Because they did not tell me specifically the reason for why I needed new cards and a new online profile is what raised my suspicion.

Sure enough - I got 2 new cards and 2 mini cards via DHL today. I called to activate them and for kicks I routed myself through to an operator after the cards were activated via the automated system. I asked the CSR if they knew why my card was cancelled and a new card was issued and the response was that this was how expiring cards were refreshed via the regular cycle. However, my card was not scheduled to expire until 2012. I just said thank you and hung up - still perplexed.

[Jeanie]

Hmm, if this was me I would close any accounts that dealt with this company. I don't like to worry/wonder about my credit cards and with that kind of action going I wouldn't trust it. JMO..Good luck with whatever you choose sumfungai..

My Discover Card was also compromised and just as Sumfung explained the same thing happened to me.

I called their Phoenix customer service center again last night to see if there was any additional info. Sure enough the standard reply I got was that your card must have expired and that you were simply getting refreshed. I told them my original card was not set to expire until 2012 and they said "Oh, then you must have called for new cards....."

I then asked to be sent to the Fraud and Security department and they gave me the standard response that cards get replaced from time to time for cardholder protection. I mentioned to the CSR that this had happened before with no problems but I never had to change my online profile and they could not answer that beyond saying "You have to do it this time!"

Nonetheless, I am frustrated and unsure if I will keep my account with Discover.

Well i never give attention on that issue buddy .... I think as sumfunangi siad you must have applied for a new credit card....

Hi,

I too found the forum searching for something that happened to me.

I went online to check my Discover statement on 1/2/08. I noticed 44 charges starting on 12/28/07 to 12/29/07 from Walmart in TN totaling around $3500.00. I called Discover immediately and was transferred to their fraud division. They said they'd remove the charges, close the card and issue me a new card. I received my new cards today and registered my new card online. I went on and noticed that they missed 2 of the fraudulent charges. I called them back. My investigator wasn't in, so I talked with another one, he made a note to remove them. He asked if we'd ever been to TN or lost my card. I said no. I asked him if these charges were made over the internet. He said that their system shows the charges were made by a credit card at the store and that someone had made a duplicate copy of my card. I thought that's scary because I only used it around town for Christmas. So someone must've swiped it with a fraudulent card reader. Anyway, after I got off the phone I wondered if we used that card when we went to SC for vacation. I pulled out the statement and I had. So for 2 weeks from CT to SC we used that card just about everywhere we went, so I'm wondering now if it happened during that time, with the states being so close. Anyway, after reading your posts, NOW I'm thinking maybe you're right, maybe there was a security breach. According to the person I spoke to on the phone tonight, whomever made the copy of my card was part a "very sophisticated fraud ring"....(or maybe not). Oh, and the funny thing is on 12/22/07 I had received a call from Discover verifying the large amount of charges made on the account between 12/21/07 and 12/22/07, all of which were all around my town, I was glad they called and checked anyway. Maybe they could've called when they had 42 charges on 12/29/07 from TN.