Fraudulent credit card charges from SYS INC.
I was importing my credit card and bank statements into QuickBooks when I noticed a charge I didn't recognize. The merchant was SYS INC and the amount was $9.10. I logged in to Bank of America so I could review the charge, but it only listed the merchant as a Stationary, Office & School Supply store. There was no phone number or other identifying information.
I do quite a bit online shopping, but this was my business Visa card so the charge really bothered me. When I checked the date of the transaction it occurred on the day I went to Six Flags for the first time. I know I didn't use my business card that day.
A friend of mine worked some Google magic and found an online forum where people were complaining about this company and its fraudulent charges. Apparently the scam usually involves a phone call first, but I never received one. Charges were always the same, too...either $9.05 or $9.10 (my charge). Sometimes a phone number appears on the statement, but no one ever answers...it's just a generic voice mail message telling the caller to leave a message. The recording doesn't even mention a company name. The number, in case you're curious, is 866-529-6539.
I was able to call Bank of America and have the charge removed without any issue, but now it makes me wonder how SYS INC got my credit card info to begin with. So, please be sure to carefully check your statements. If you see a charge from SYS INC in the amount of $9.10 or $9.05 go ahead and file a dispute with your credit card immediately.
I was about to just ignore the charge and chalk it up to me being forgetful. My guess is SYS INC counts on this very thing. There were probably hundreds of complaints in that forum thread, and there's no telling how many people have been suckered without realizing it.
Comments
I am glad you caught this and got it resolved without too much trouble. The real question though is how are these people still out there? I worked for a company that accepted online credit card payments and one thing that sticks in my mind is how we were to be careful not to have any issues. In fact I once had to respond to a claim that we had done something wrong.
Of course things will happen, and we had the opportunity to respond, but there were serious consequences if we were found of wrong-doing, including hefty fines and losing our account. So why is Sys Inc still able to bill and why didn't your credit card company flag it to begin with?
There are all kinds of ways these folks are getting a hold of information. We believed one of our cards was copied when it was used at a point of sale machine in the US. It was used in a Walmart in Mexico. The credit card company alerted us and the charges were removed, but it was scary to think how this could happen.
I would encourage you to share your story with your local representative. This is not a little issue.