You think you're careful...

You think you're careful.

You think it will never happen to you.

And then you come home from work and find a message from your credit card company on your answering machine. There are some unusual charges on your account that they want you to verify.

And they're not yours.

So that was my evening: calls from and to credit card agents, bank, police, physical trip over to the bank branch with the late hours to fill out paperwork, wait wait wait, finally get in, paperwork paperwork, back to police station with updated report, wait, deal with police, and finally home again.

Time expended: 4 hours.

Amount fraudulently charged: in excess of $500.

Thank all the gods the company does track usage and check these things. And that I had procrastinated doing my holiday shopping and didn't have that on my card to sort out also.

And so very very glad I have a spare credit card that I can use to do my shopping while my new card clears and gets here.

Did you know that credit companies won't issue replacement cards during the entire month of December due to the holiday shopping season and amount of transactions and fraud that happens then? I didn't, until today. Just got in under the wire. Odd to be thankful that the thieves struck now instead of a couple weeks from now, but there it is.

Still some paperwork to do and return to bank; worry about that tomorrow.

Gah.

Bed now.