Help me feel less dumb (Target banking issues)

[bab]

I have not noticed any money missing from my account.  Should I change my debit card anyway?  I recently got the damn Red card from Target, probably just before Thanksgiving and it is the one linked to my bank account.  Should I cancel it?  Is my account suddenly going to be wiped or what?  I don't understand any of this.  Have people actually had money stolen or what? 

[elleblue]

There is a great thread over on CE&P that explains a lot of what's going on and the risks at hand.
If you used your debit card at Target during the dates Nov27-Dec15, get a new card issued and change your pin number. I don't know much about how the red card works, so I hesitate to give you advice on that front.

[toepick]

Yes, call your bank and get a new debit card. Call Target for a new Red card.

And some unasked for advice? Stop using a debit card completely. Much safer to use a credit card!

[toepick]

Yes, since the thieves have your bank account information, they could conceivably empty your accounts.

[Deleted]

Because it's basically impossible to get through to Target, you can change your Red card debit PIN online. Then you can call your bank and ask them to stop payment on any Target charges. I can't do that right now because I have two outstanding charges waiting to clear.

[starlily]

My understanding is that the card numbers and PINs are being sold in batches overseas, so there's no good way to tell when/if your account might get compromised.

Unless you want to monitor your account multiple times daily, it's much easier to just get a new card.

[tripleshot]

Dec 21, 2013 19:27:45 GMT -5 @buster said:

You can request a new card online too. I did that on Thursday and wasn't sure if it would work, but my red card wouldn't swipe today.

I don't think the new card will have a new account number though.  I changed my pin online until. Can get through to a Target to get a new account. 

[bab]

I just read that my bank, Chase, is limiting Target transactions to $100 cash withdrawl and $300/total transaction per day. I'm going to get a new card Monday. They can do them right at the branch now.

[bab]

Dec 21, 2013 20:35:46 GMT -5 @buster said:

Dec 21, 2013 20:31:17 GMT -5 tripleshot said:

I don't think the new card will have a new account number though.  I changed my pin online until. Can get through to a Target to get a new account. 

I thought about that but if you request a new card, why would they send the same account number? Dh seems to think it will be a new number, but really, we'll have to wait and see. It did seem a little too easy to me, but at least the current one isn't working right now.

They will probably give you a new debit card number but still the same bank account number?  I don't know. 

[bab]

 I just checked the website for Chase and it says many branches are open tomorrow. I hope one of the branches near me is open so I can just go get the new card. This is starting to weird me out.

Full disclosure, I used my Red card today because I wanted to get 15% off the rest of my shopping  (10% "we fucked up" discount + 5% normal Red card discount)

[MixedBerryJam]

Dec 21, 2013 20:41:01 GMT -5 bab said:

Dec 21, 2013 20:35:46 GMT -5 @buster said:

I thought about that but if you request a new card, why would they send the same account number? Dh seems to think it will be a new number, but really, we'll have to wait and see. It did seem a little too easy to me, but at least the current one isn't working right now.

They will probably give you a new debit card number but still the same bank account number?  I don't know. 

I was just coming in to say this is likely the case. Can I ask the stupidest question of the day, even though I haven't read that CEP thread yet (going to do that next): I only seem to be hearing about debit cards. Is it ONLY debit cards that are at risk in this situation? I haven't seen any suspect tx on my credit card (a Chase Freedom, not a Target) and wonder if I need not be hyperconcerned. I don't actually have a debit card.