Credit Card Fraud - Airline Ticket Purchased

Im assuming the airline themselves wont go through the trouble and I figured I can take matters into my own hands. Btw purchase was 3 weeks ago so im sure the person already flew this costing the airline money.

EricoChico99 wrote: ↑ Im assuming the airline themselves wont go through the trouble and I figured I can take matters into my own hands. Btw purchase was 3 weeks ago so im sure the person already flew this costing the airline money.

1. Probably nobody will give you identity of person on the ticket.

2. Airline is not at fault (unless they broke standard procedure)

3. Credit Card will cover the fraud -- it is one of "cost of business",
ultimately paid by users in higher fees.

4. Credit card fraud department can peruse the case, or not.
Your efforts are useless (I guess).

Cheers!

Ah ok i would think its the merchant on the hook and they would take it more “personal” than the credit co. I dont see the credit co doing anything too common

Why not report it to the police and let them call the airlines? After all, you know enough of the details as it's included in your credit card statement for the police to go after it themselves.

Just call the credit card company and let them know what happened. They will investigate and will reverse the charges if they find evidence of fraud. Your card will be cancelled and a new one sent (if you need it quicker, get them to send it to your local bank branch). Make sure you dispute the charges within 60 days or you will be stuck with it. It would be nice to find out what exactly happened and who did it, but I doubt you will get anywhere with that.

EricoChico99 wrote: ↑So turns out my card was hijacked and someone booked an airline ticket which I have disputed. I know ill be refunded, but im kinda pissed. So, since you have to use your real identity to purchase a ticket and fly, is it worth it for me to call the airline and then give the persons name to the police? Anyone have success doing this?

EricoChico99 wrote: ↑ Im assuming the airline themselves wont go through the trouble and I figured I can take matters into my own hands. Btw purchase was 3 weeks ago so im sure the person already flew this costing the airline money.

Presuming you notified the credit card company that is how you know you will be reimbursed?
I have had my card "scammed" several times. Eh time i was not held responsible and the credit cad company knew exactly where the "scamming" took place. They cancelled the card, credited my account and sent me a new card.
You don't need to do anything except report to them.

I've had my card compromised and someone booked a Norwegian Cruise. The cc company immediately cancelled my card and I didn't have to do anything else.

This isnt about getting my money back its about fking over the scammer. Again you need to use your real ID to fly so cant I get this person arrested? Would the police even care?

EricoChico99 wrote: ↑ This isnt about getting my money back its about fking over the scammer. Again you need to use your real ID to fly so cant I get this person arrested? Would the police even care?

You have to understand that airline ticket fraud is not as cut and dry as using a stolen card number to book a ticket (as in Mr X stole your card and used it to book a flight for himself).

This is a HUGE thing in the industry that results in chargebacks and millions of dollars lost. Pretty much every airline and OTA have a large fraud department because it's such a big deal. Do you have any details on the ticket? My bets are that it was probably booked through a third party website (don't get me wrong fraud happens with airlines directly as well).

The scammers use a combination of the following techniques:
1. Use a stolen credit card for a flight leaving today or in the very near future (by the time you realize that your card has been used fraudulently the flight has already taken place)
2. One way tickets are very common that are not departing from your city and in many cases even your country (you live in Toronto: the flight booked is London Gawtick- Fort Lauderdale) ... This is why calling the police would be useless
3. The ticket is booked (fraudulent credit card) and then cancelled the remaining funds are transferred to another person (some airlines allow you to do this- happens a lot with Southwest) and the next person uses those funds to book the flight. Person B may be someone who bought the airline credit off Kijiji or Ebay. By the time this secondary person is investigated they may have already travelled and really had no idea that they were involved in this. Many times person A will post a screenshot to the buyer showing their cancelled flight and their 'travel bank' that can be used towards a new ticket of choice. So now Mr B (innocent guy) books new tickets and sends Mr A $1000 in cash.
4. MR A uses stolen card to book flights for 'real' people he knows who are generally up to no good to begin (think drug smuggling, money laundering, human trafficking etc) with they are typically one way flights leaving ASAP like today (a $3000 charge for 3x last minute tickets from CDG-IST). Who should get involved? The 3rd party site? The airline? Paris police? Istanbul police?
5. Hate to pinpoint certain areas but a very high level of fraudulent tickets originate OR terminate on the African continent. Europe being a close second. In Canada Montreal (YUL) airport is a hot spot for fraud.
6. An older trick... book a ticket in the cardholder's name (again near future- a few days out) do a name change at the airport (SOME airlines still allow this depending where you are in the world/ routes). Collect $ from innocent person and disappear.

I have attended mandatory fraud courses/training and walk out of there each and every time mind blown on the new tricks and techniques these scam artists come up with. I don't even deal with customers/clients directly but it's a company wide effort to combat this (if that is any indication on how out of control this is).

EricoChico99 wrote: ↑ This isnt about getting my money back its about fking over the scammer. Again you need to use your real ID to fly so cant I get this person arrested? Would the police even care?

It might not be that simple. The person flying might not be the actual scammer...I'm not sure if you can buy plane tickets on the secondary market (with change fees of course)...but someone buying discounted tickets aren't considering if they were purchased fraudulently.

edit: ^I was typing at the same time as BrunetteGirl. Good post!

BrunetteGirl wrote: ↑ You have to understand that airline ticket fraud is not as cut and dry as using a stolen card number to book a ticket (as in Mr X stole your card and used it to book a flight for himself).

This is a HUGE thing in the industry that results in chargebacks and millions of dollars lost. Pretty much every airline and OTA have a large fraud department because it's such a big deal. Do you have any details on the ticket? My bets are that it was probably booked through a third party website (don't get me wrong fraud happens with airlines directly as well).

The scammers use a combination of the following techniques:
1. Use a stolen credit card for a flight leaving today or in the very near future (by the time you realize that your card has been used fraudulently the flight has already taken place)
2. One way tickets are very common that are not departing from your city and in many cases even your country (you live in Toronto: the flight booked is London Gawtick- Fort Lauderdale) ... This is why calling the police would be useless
3. The ticket is booked (fraudulent credit card) and then cancelled the remaining funds are transferred to another person (some airlines allow you to do this- happens a lot with Southwest) and the next person uses those funds to book the flight. Person B may be someone who bought the airline credit off Kijiji or Ebay. By the time this secondary person is investigated they may have already travelled and really had no idea that they were involved in this. Many times person A will post a screenshot to the buyer showing their cancelled flight and their 'travel bank' that can be used towards a new ticket of choice. So now Mr B (innocent guy) books new tickets and sends Mr A $1000 in cash.
4. MR A uses stolen card to book flights for 'real' people he knows who are generally up to no good to begin (think drug smuggling, money laundering, human trafficking etc) with they are typically one way flights leaving ASAP like today (a $3000 charge for 3x last minute tickets from CDG-IST). Who should get involved? The 3rd party site? The airline? Paris police? Istanbul police?
5. Hate to pinpoint certain areas but a very high level of fraudulent tickets originate OR terminate on the African continent. Europe being a close second. In Canada Montreal (YUL) airport is a hot spot for fraud.

I have attended mandatory fraud courses/training and walk out of there each and every time mind blown on the new tricks and techniques these scam artists come up with. I don't even deal with customers/clients directly but it's a company wide effort to combat this (if that is any indication on how out of control this is).

What if these ppl are not sophisticated criminals? But amatuers who live in the gta and are doing this for their own benefit travelling to and from Toronto? Thats a more simple prosecution right

EricoChico99 wrote: ↑ What if these ppl are not sophisticated criminals? But amatuers who live in the gta and are doing this for their own benefit travelling to and from Toronto? Thats a more simple prosecution right

I haven't even mentioned the sophisticated fraud going on. That was just the classic ABC that has been going on for years. The sophisticated tactics make my head spin.

Simply looking up the PNR (do you have it I have seen the PNR show up on my statement before next to the merchant) Will tell you everything you need to know. What charge does it say on your statement (airline directly? OTA?) Were you charged in CAD or foreign currency?

Could it be someone in Toronto? Sure. Could it be someone outside of Ontario? Much greater chance.

EricoChico99 wrote: ↑ What if these ppl are not sophisticated criminals? But amatuers who live in the gta and are doing this for their own benefit travelling to and from Toronto? Thats a more simple prosecution right
...
This isnt about getting my money back its about fking over the scammer. Again you need to use your real ID to fly so cant I get this person arrested? Would the police even care?

Dude, just be happy you got a chargeback and aren't on the hook for somebody else's vacation. Identity theft would be MUCH worse.
Let the banks and airlines deal with the scammers. If their policies/loopholes let such a thing happen so easily (as @BrunetteGirl explained) that's their fault and they're who pays, not you (directly anyway), and they need to tighten things up.

More importantly, you don't know how much info the scammers have about you, yet you know nothing about them. Do you really want them to go after YOU if they know you were making an effort to go after them? You're bringing a knife to a gunfight there. Just walk away and be thankful it wasn't identity theft and you didn't have your accounts drained and have your credit report trashed (or worse, have warrants on you for crimes you didn't commit...)

EricoChico99 wrote: ↑This isnt about getting my money back its about fking over the scammer. Again you need to use your real ID to fly so cant I get this person arrested? Would the police even care?

Good luck with that. You will ever find them.

EricoChico99 wrote: ↑ What if these ppl are not sophisticated criminals? But amatuers who live in the gta and are doing this for their own benefit travelling to and from Toronto? Thats a more simple prosecution right

Sophisticated enough to scam your card I would say is pretty sophisticated. the credit card company has ways to get them.

EastGTARedFlagger wrote: ↑ Dude, just be happy you got a chargeback and aren't on the hook for somebody else's vacation. Identity theft would be MUCH worse.
Let the banks and airlines deal with the scammers. If their policies/loopholes let such a thing happen so easily (as @BrunetteGirl explained) that's their fault and they're who pays, not you (directly anyway), and they need to tighten things up.

More importantly, you don't know how much info the scammers have about you, yet you know nothing about them. Do you really want them to go after YOU if they know you were making an effort to go after them? You're bringing a knife to a gunfight there. Just walk away and be thankful it wasn't identity theft and you didn't have your accounts drained and have your credit report trashed (or worse, have warrants on you for crimes you didn't commit...)

Exactly.

For all you know the ticket was actually booked in YOUR name but the ticket was changed last minute at the airport into someone else (and in this scenario definitely did not take place in Canada as Canadian airlines would not allow this practice) OR said itinerary has been cancelled and the funds sold off to someone else. Be prepared in this case scenario that the credit card after investigating may come back to you to prove it was not you who booked the ticket (which is fairly easy to prove and can be as simple as verifying you were not in Spain on June 1st 2018).

There are many measures that airlines/3rd party websites will go through reservations with a fine tooth comb and that the CC company is involved in BEFORE tickets are issued (example: airline calling the CC company to confirm details about the cardholder as in billing address etc). The CC company in turn has their due diligence as well as when a 'verification call' from an airline/3rd party site the CC needs to be responsible that this charge being processed is not 'out of character' for the card holder (example: the cardholder has had the card for 4 years never makes large purchases and all of a sudden is booking a $2000 flight OR the card was just used today by cardholder entering a PIN in Muskoka but the card is being used to purchase a ticket leaving tonight from Barcelona to Los Angeles).

My point is SOMEBODY is on the hook for it and it's not you. Move on. If this is your first rodeo with airline ticket fraud consider yourself lucky

BrunetteGirl wrote: ↑ Exactly.

For all you know the ticket was actually booked in YOUR name but the ticket was changed last minute at the airport into someone else (and in this scenario definitely did not take place in Canada as Canadian airlines would not allow this practice) OR said itinerary has been cancelled and the funds sold off to someone else. Be prepared in this case scenario that the credit card after investigating may come back to you to prove it was not you who booked the ticket (which is fairly easy to prove and can be as simple as verifying you were not in Spain on June 1st 2018).

There are many measures that airlines/3rd party websites will go through reservations with a fine tooth comb and that the CC company is involved in BEFORE tickets are issued (example: airline calling the CC company to confirm details about the cardholder as in billing address etc). The CC company in turn has their due diligence as well as when a 'verification call' from an airline/3rd party site the CC needs to be responsible that this charge being processed is not 'out of character' for the card holder (example: the cardholder has had the card for 4 years never makes large purchases and all of a sudden is booking a $2000 flight OR the card was just used today by cardholder entering a PIN in Muskoka but the card is being used to purchase a ticket leaving tonight from Barcelona to Los Angeles).

My point is SOMEBODY is on the hook for it and it's not you. Move on. If this is your first rodeo with airline ticket fraud consider yourself lucky

When I brought a ticket online, the airline company mention that I have to present the actual credit card at the check-in counter . So how did the scammer/fraudster able to board the plane without presenting the actual credit card?

cgtlky wrote: ↑ When I brought a ticket online, the airline company mention that I have to present the actual credit card at the check-in counter . So how did the scammer/fraudster able to board the plane without presenting the actual credit card?

That is actually one of things to combat fraud the problem is that is rarely enforced.

Once the ticket is issued and the airline still has red flags about your booking (examples: billing address doesn't match, you have a history flying on said airline in economy tickets but all of a sudden you booked a $5000 first class fare) they can ask you to present the card. The flaw to this is that I've heard that cards are re-produced /duplicated and fly under the radar.

cgtlky wrote: ↑ When I brought a ticket online, the airline company mention that I have to present the actual credit card at the check-in counter . So how did the scammer/fraudster able to board the plane without presenting the actual credit card?

I've been booking airline tickets online for probably 15 years, and never once have I had to show the actual credit card to anyone at the airport. How would that even work now when a lot of people check in online and never actually interact with anyone from the airline until they're through security and at the gate? There are also common situations where it would be completely reasonable to not have the card present (e.g. assistant booking a business flight for the boss).

Manatus wrote: ↑ I've been booking airline tickets online for probably 15 years, and never once have I had to show the actual credit card to anyone at the airport. How would that even work now when a lot of people check in online and never actually interact with anyone from the airline until they're through security and at the gate? There are also common situations where it would be completely reasonable to not have the card present (e.g. assistant booking a business flight for the boss).

Indeed. I fly about 45 times a year (mostly for business) and 99% of the time it doesn't happen but I've had it happen once or twice. On British Airways my online check in was inhibited and they had to swipe the card at check in (If you don't have the card, they'll refund the old one and charge the new one the same cost), Cathay Pacific often ask for it if you check in at the desk.