Why would a criminal do this? And, do I have to change my email address? (long!)

[Little Nyssa]

Maybe some of you internet experts can help me understand this?

I began getting emails from Best Buy thanking me for setting up some kind of points-bearing reward account with them.  These were genuinely from Best Buy, and the account was set up with my email.  There was no suspicious link to click.  They called me Angela, which is not my name.  I just threw the emails out and paid no attention.

Then Saturday I got an email from them thanking me for requesting an email receipt!  I received two email receipts for items I did not buy. They were bought in a state across the country from me. There was again no suspicious link, and the emails were from the genuine Best Buy, not some shadow website.  I did not click anywhere on these emails.  The items were not bought with my credit card (thank goodness!) and have other people's names on them.  There is a note on each of them thanking "Santa" for the purchase.  

The first was for a $300 item, bought by a man who is (according to google) a night watchman in the town where the purchases were made. He appears to be from Cameroon. The second was for a $900 item bought in the same location a minute later by a man who is (again according to google) an Icelander, living in Iceland and who was recently married.  

I called Best Buy and they said one of these purchases was already flagged as fraudulent.  This all happened within about 10 minutes, because I happened to be checking my email just after the purchases were made.  So they noted down that it has nothing to do with me. I forwarded all the emails to Best Buy's abuse-reporting email, and asked them to close that points-bearing account.

Now, my email is not something anyone would have come up with randomly.  It's not like mary@yahoo.com or something.  So why would a criminal attach it to a points bearing account?  It had nothing to do with my actual name or credit card.  What is going on?  I have changed the password to my email account, but I'm hoping that I don't have to start a completely new account because it would be a pain.  

Thanks if you've read this far!

[Anne in CA]

I really wish I knew. My dh used to work in the loyalty industry. I can ask him when he gets done with the project he is working on. But I know quite a bit about loyalty myself and find this to be highly unusual. A fraud where people try to get points??? Using an email that is sure to get them in trouble? Very odd.

[Mrs Mungo]

Maybe they have a similar email and made a mistake when attaching it to that account?

[Wildcat]

I am no help with the points thing.... Best Buy doesn't require a points card to buy things at sale prices, do they? That is the strangest part to me.

 

Either way, I wonder if your e-mail was just copied from some list that was forwarded and forwarded and forwarded (you know, the kinds where people forward things without removing all the previous e-mails?).

 

At least Best Buy is looking into it. I wouldn't change your e-mail account just yet, and I would also keep the e-mails in case you need them in the future for proof of some sort.  

 

I hope your mystery is solved soon!

 

 

[DarlaS]

Not sure why changing your password would help? They don't need it to have e-mail sent to you. Do you have any reason to believe someone has been logging into your email?

 

Hope nothing more alarming happens. :-/

[El...]

I think you should call your credit/debit card company right away and ask them to put a watch on your accounts.  That should make them more alert to strange charges.  It might delay you if you plan a large purchase, but if Best Buy was hacked or had data stolen, your past purchase information might still be deep in their records.  

[Lara in Colo]

I think you should call your credit/debit card company right away and ask them to put a watch on your accounts.  That should make them more alert to strange charges.  It might delay you if you plan a large purchase, but if Best Buy was hacked or had data stolen, your past purchase information might still be deep in their records.  

 

This sounds like very good advice.

[ondreeuh]

Any chance you have a Paypal account attached to that email account? Using my paypal account always gets that email address on the company's mailing list.

 

ETA: were these online orders? Phone orders? Maybe someone set up a fake points account for overseas customers who can't just make their own? Is there a discount just for being a "member" that would make that lucrative? If it was a phone order then I would wonder about an employee doing an "inside job." Can you call the location and ask how those purchases were made?

[Night Elf]

I have a Best Buy loyalty card. They set it up with an email and a name/address. i don't remember it having anything to do with form of payment. When you make a purchase, it is noted on the rewards account and you earn points for every dollar you spend. Then when you accumulate a certain number of points, you get a $10 gift card to be used on anything in the store. I'd ask Best Buy if they can check the name and address on the account to verify it isn't you. I honestly can't understand why someone would make a fraudulent rewards account. When you make a purchase, you either physically hand them the card to scan or you give them your phone number to look up your account. But you can't get the discount until you receive an email with a link to the rewards website and print out your discount certificate. Maybe that's why they requested an email receipt? Are you saying two separate people used this same rewards account? That's so weird! I hope Best Buy cancels it for you. But I'm not sure that won't stop the person from opening an account again.

[MeghanL]

I really don't think you need to worry. Your credit card information/personal address were not used or compromised. Basically, you just got emails sent to you inadvertently. It's like getting your neighbors mail delivered to your house. You called and corrected the problem, I don't think there's anything else to do.

[Kathryn]

If it was just one person's charges, I would think that the person who typed the email address into the store computer got it wrong. Bt it's strange that you got notices of two different people's purchases. IDK how that would happen.

[Alexigail]

Even if no one is using your current card, it is possible that someone has opened a credit card in your name using your email address and other personal info.  I would be making calls to the companies involved and find out if there is a card out there with your name on it.

[elfgivas]

two different people, both with non-american nationalities, using your email at the same company is Not Typical.

 

i would

a) call credit cards and report possible stolen identity and ask for new cards

b) call credit score agencies and tell them what has happened and ask them what you should do.  typically, they will put a watch on your name and require additional confirmation if anyone tries to get a line of credit or a mortgage or....

c) get rid of email address and create a new one. 

 

yes its a pain.  but not nearly the pain if someone successfully steals your identity.  they haven't used anything yet; it doesn't mean they won't.  there are bizarre schemes out there, like someone managing to remortgage your house.  them having a track record of their name with your email account makes that one step closer to possible.  and setting up a points account is something a legitimate person does, as it really has little benefit to a thief.... except starting a seemingly innocent history.

 

this is not something i would blow off, at all.  the fact that you caught it in a timely manner is really helpful to law enforcement. 

 

hth,

ann

 

[Wildcat]

Another thought occurred to me.  Is it possible that the problem isn't with the e-mail address, but someone at Best Buy entered a wrong number, thereby attaching a sale to OP's rewards account purely by accident?

 

We only have one BB rewards card, so when any of the rest of us shop there, we give our phone number for them to look it up. If the cashier enters just one digit off, the sale will probably post our rewards to someone's account other than ours. Or, even while ordering online, if someone enters the wrong number, it could post to a different account, no?

 

The fact that one of the charges was fraudulent could just be coincidence. I'm not a big believer in coincidence, but with the amount of cc fraud, it's possible. 

 

Anyway, it's just a thought!

[elfgivas]

Another thought occurred to me.  Is it possible that the problem isn't with the e-mail address, but someone at Best Buy entered a wrong number, thereby attaching a sale to OP's rewards account purely by accident?

 

 

twice at the same location with different people within 1 minute fits the profile of how identity theft folks work.

(we've been thru this three times so far)

 

it is unlikely to be clerical error. 

(but i so wish it were)

 

fwiw,

ann

 

[ILiveInFlipFlops]

According to this, Best Buy rewards members get free shipping:

 

https://my.bestbuy.com/about/

 

Of course, I don't know how that works if they're international buyers, but maybe that has something to do with it?

 

ETA: Were you able to determine where the items where shipped TO? I know the buyers were (theoretically) in Cameroon and Iceland, but was the shipping address in the US?

 

On a side note, I can never figure out how the criminals who do this receive their illegally purchased merchandise when they buy it online (which it seems they often do). Wouldn't that be a big clue for investigators? I'm sure there must be a way since it happens so often, but I'm not clever enough to figure it out!

 

ETA again: Of course I just realized that someone shopping with a stolen credit card is not going to worry about free shipping  :lol: . The whole thing is mystifying for sure.

[songsparrow]

It does sound like some form of theft, but I'm wondering if it's the foreign people's credit cards/identities that were stolen and being used to ship merchandise to the theives in the US.

 

Perhaps they accidentally plugged in your rewards number (off by a digit or something) on 2 of the transactions. Maybe they were giving rewards points on the stolen merchandise to a friend or accomplice.

 

ETA: I just went back and re-read the OP. It sounds like they used the OP's email when they set up the rewards account, so it wasn't a mistype of the number. I don't know why they'd do that.

[Little Nyssa]

Hi everybody, thank you for your suggestions!  

In answer to above questions, I think that the items were bought in a particular store, not online.  And my email is quite unusual, so I think you would need to type it in on purpose, not mistakenly.   Also the name on the rewards card is "Santa" and the address and zip code on that rewards account  are just a jumble of numbers, so it doesn't seem to be somebody else's real rewards card that got mixed up with my email by mistake. I also never started a Best Buy rewards card on my own. 

I've changed my email password, just in case,  and now am changing out my bank account/card number too.  I don't know if this really needs to be done but I guess it couldn't hurt!  I am considering a credit freeze too.

I have also contacted the local police and the state attorney general-- I called Clark Howard who recommended this--we'll see what they say.  Everyone I talk to is mystified by this. Perhaps I am discovering the tip of the iceberg of a new kind of fraud and a world of honest citizens will thank me one day haha.  Anyway I hope it will not lead to anything worse.  Thank you all!

 

[DarlaS]

I still fail to understand how changing your e-mail password will keep people from putting your e-mail address (which they already have) on a form?

 

Were they logging into your e-mail and sending messages?

[Tenaj]

Hi everybody, thank you for your suggestions!  

In answer to above questions, I think that the items were bought in a particular store, not online.  And my email is quite unusual, so I think you would need to type it in on purpose, not mistakenly.   Also the name on the rewards card is "Santa" and the address and zip code on that rewards account  are just a jumble of numbers, so it doesn't seem to be somebody else's real rewards card that got mixed up with my email by mistake. I also never started a Best Buy rewards card on my own. 

I've changed my email password, just in case,  and now am changing out my bank account/card number too.  I don't know if this really needs to be done but I guess it couldn't hurt!  I am considering a credit freeze too.

I have also contacted the local police and the state attorney general-- I called Clark Howard who recommended this--we'll see what they say.  Everyone I talk to is mystified by this. Perhaps I am discovering the tip of the iceberg of a new kind of fraud and a world of honest citizens will thank me one day haha.  Anyway I hope it will not lead to anything worse.  Thank you all!

 

I think you're doing the right things.  In the summer of 2012 our credit card number was compromised two times within a period of three months. Both times the fraud was committed with charges at Best Buy.  We never did figure out what happened but the first time someone purchased a laptop online with our card from Best Buy and it was delivered to an address about 50 miles from our home.  We changed our account and then two months later another charge came flying through from Best Buy again.  That time it was caught the same day and they were able to stop the shipment.  

 

I've wondered since whether Best Buy has some security issues (though it had been about three years since we had used that particular card at Best Buy and then didn't use the new card between times) or whether it was just coincidence that two thieves chose the same store?  It was really strange and we've had no trouble since.

 

Anyway, having the name Best Buy in your story was enough for me to advise you not to mess around but change all those accounts right away!

[Excelsior! Academy]

Maybe they have a similar email and made a mistake when attaching it to that account?

 

This. 

 

I used to get emails thanking me for my purchases to WWE. Using my super sleuthing skills I ninja googled and found out the person was a real person with the same last name.  I am pretty sure it was just an email mix up. 

[Little Nyssa]

I still fail to understand how changing your e-mail password will keep people from putting your e-mail address (which they already have) on a form?

 

Were they logging into your e-mail and sending messages?

I fail to understand it too... I just wondered if they somehow had access to my email and would open it and see the email receipts and access their points from there?  It does seem kind of unusual doesn't it?  Why wouldn't they... just use their own email?  or... get a paper receipt? Or log onto Best Buy's own website?

 

The only guess I have is that they could have stolen my identity and are using this reward program to build up some kind of history, before they open a new CC account??  In that case it makes sense for me to try to protect all my online things.  And it's not like a new password will hurt me anyway.

 

I'm not saying any of this makes sense.  

 

I'm beginning to think maybe it's just a glitch at Best Buy... in spite of my calls and emails to them, I am still getting email receipts... the latest is a laptop purchase in Humble, Texas!

 

But when I talked to local police they were very suspicious that something unusual is going on.

[Alessandra]

It is mystifying. I was going to suggest calling police in case there is some pattern, but I see you have already done this. Will police contact another agency that might deal with this?

 

I am so sorry that you are going through this!

[Guest]

 

I'm beginning to think maybe it's just a glitch at Best Buy... in spite of my calls and emails to them, I am still getting email receipts... the latest is a laptop purchase in Humble, Texas!

 

That makes me nervous. Expensive and high-desirability merchandise, extremely irrelevant various locations. I admit I'm stumped, but this would freak me out a little bit. Okay, a lot. 

[Guest submarines]

Posting so that I don't miss any updates.  :coolgleamA:

 

[Wildcat]

twice at the same location with different people within 1 minute fits the profile of how identity theft folks work.

(we've been thru this three times so far)

 

it is unlikely to be clerical error. 

(but i so wish it were)

 

fwiw,

ann

 

 

Yeah, but I was hoping it was something innocent. :tongue_smilie:

 

We haven't been the victims of identity theft, but have had one cc replaced five times in four years due to fraud (all through online hacking). Sigh.

 

I fail to understand it too... I just wondered if they somehow had access to my email and would open it and see the email receipts and access their points from there?  It does seem kind of unusual doesn't it?  Why wouldn't they... just use their own email?  or... get a paper receipt? Or log onto Best Buy's own website?

 

The only guess I have is that they could have stolen my identity and are using this reward program to build up some kind of history, before they open a new CC account??  In that case it makes sense for me to try to protect all my online things.  And it's not like a new password will hurt me anyway.

 

I'm not saying any of this makes sense.  

 

I'm beginning to think maybe it's just a glitch at Best Buy... in spite of my calls and emails to them, I am still getting email receipts... the latest is a laptop purchase in Humble, Texas!

 

But when I talked to local police they were very suspicious that something unusual is going on.

 

In light of this latest info (Humble, Texas! That makes three locations, purchases now!!), I no longer hold out hope that it's a simple clerical error. In fact, I would be putting fraud alerts on my & dh's credit files. I wouldn't stop at a credit freeze, but have a fraud alert placed.

 

[Little Nyssa]

Update:

 

Well, as you might have guessed, I still am getting emailed receipts from items I did not buy, from many areas of the country, particularly places I do not live.

[To reiterate: none of them have my credit card info on them; they are just linked to my email from a Rewards program which I did not join. There's been no other activity on any of my own accounts to indicate my i.d. has been stolen or something.]

The purchases lately have been in cash. A $15 powercord, or a $900 laptop-- paid for in cash.  This is less interesting for me because if it's cash then the name of the purchaser isn't on the receipt and then I don't get the fun of googling them.  But cash? Who has $900 cash to buy a laptop?

 

I have forwarded each receipt to Best Buy and they promised that this will stop soon.

 

Anyway, here is the kicker: I am now the proud owner of a $25 gift certificate to Best Buy!  Because of all the points, you see, that all these purchases have racked up.   It came to my email address.

 

I am not really planning to use it since it's based on some kind of something shady, and also because I have informed BB that it's not mine and so what would they do if I show up with it? I wonder what they would say if I call and ask?