Unknown person is using my points for a poor value stay

Old May 29, 2012, 7:44 am
  #46  
 
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Originally Posted by patrickATX
It is not hard to search google when you hear of such rumors...

http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/hotelkey.asp

And yes, it is only a rumor, not fact.


Not everything googled is current but this 2012 article makes sense....

http://brokensecrets.com/2012/02/18/...personal-info/

.....maybe a problem for old card access systems at one time and rumors are still around because crooks used hotel cards to "store" not "collect" sensitive data.
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Old May 29, 2012, 8:03 am
  #47  
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Originally Posted by holtju2
How come?

Maybe someone just paid for a third party to make a point reservation for him.
It is still a case of ID theft from the third party if it is the case you believed. I never said it was the people who stayed in the hotel did the ID theft thing. I said IT IS CLEARLY A CASE OF ID THEFT.
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Old May 29, 2012, 8:19 am
  #48  
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I've heard of similar things, and often it's someone at a hotel involved with the booking, or someone with access to their back end info.
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Old May 29, 2012, 10:49 am
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Expanding upon what Jaimito said above, were you ever at that hotel?

If so, you should name it, as it could likely be an insider selling the information and one would not want other FTers exposed to this sort of risk.

In addition, how did this guy pay for the room. If cash, I would be quite suspcious, as rarely is cash used these days.

Further, how did the guy check in without showing some sort of ID?

And, if he used id, and/or paid with a credit card, get the name, etc.

Keep us posted!
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Old May 29, 2012, 11:04 am
  #50  
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I don't understand why the hotel didn't call the police instead of just letting him pay cash and leave, never verifying his identity or the story about the other guy who booked the room for him. The hotel's actions are making me believe that it was an inside job.
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Old May 29, 2012, 11:48 am
  #51  
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To answer the most recent questions, NO, I have never stayed at the hotel.

The hotel DID take down his drivers license number at registration (but not address or other information) and did try to run his credit card for the $25 temporary hold, but the CC was declined. The hotel then asked him if he just wanted them to run the credit card on file and he said yes (I have a REAL problem with this -- even in cases where I agree to use my points to book a room for friends or family, I do NOT agree to let them charge incidentals to my credit card without MY consent.)

For those who have insisted I file criminal charges, I was advised by Houston PD that I cannot do so, as I am NOT the victim (since PC has agreed to give me my points back, I will suffer no loss -- the hotel or PC would have to file the complaint).

I do not know HOW he paid for the room -- don't know if one of his credit cards magically worked or whether he paid cash.

I have done an reverse search on the email address to which mine was changed and can only ascertain that it is based in Mountain View, CA from a Mountain View, CA IP address.

While I was NOT impressed with the hotel's response of "file a fraud complaint with PC" when I called on Sunday morning to advise them of the first 4 nights fraudulent booking, I was VERY impressed with the hotel's response to my Monday afternoon call regarding the 5th fraudulent night. Clearly, the hotel response varied depending on who was manning the front desk.
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Old May 29, 2012, 3:54 pm
  #52  
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Fascinating (and also somewhat scary story). Thank you OP for giving us updates, I'll be watching this one with interest, though I'm sorry you have to deal with the hassle of this.
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Old May 29, 2012, 5:19 pm
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OP --

Just what credit card was on file? One of yours? If so, this is identity theft, and it is mail and wire fraud -- I do not know if the Houston PD knows this portion of the story, but I believe you are a victim as you neither gave consent nor knew of this indiviidual using your credit card to permit him entry to the room. It is an unauthroized use of the credit card and that is a crime.

Furthermore, the hotel has some real explaining to do as you indicated that they decline one credit card, but then authorize another's use, presumably with a different name. This is pure negligence, at the very least.

Keep us posted, as you ought to call the hotel again and get names, etc.
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Old May 29, 2012, 5:33 pm
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Originally Posted by GetawaysRus
You are not alone:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/inter...g-my-acct.html

Your situation is probably different than mine, however. Although PC never gave me a name, I am 99.9% certain that my unauthorized user was my ex-wife. I know that because I noticed that the home address listed in my PC account changed to an address located in the town where she lives after an unauthorized reservation was made. This has taken me quite some time, and many phone calls, to resolve. In the end, I have had to change my PC online password, change the phone number I use for my PC account, and even change my PC account number. Changing my PC account number turned out to be a big hassle because it was difficult to get Chase to change the PC account number that my PC Chase VISA points flow into. But I hope I've got it all straightened out now....
did the person get to stay and the pts come out of your account?
did you get them back.
PC seems better than qantas a friend of mines x wife moved 100k 2 yrs running , when he called to get them back they said as she had the pin no and moved them online they could not draw them back
seemed odd to me so i called them as his secretary and they gave me the same answer. cant claw them back.
unfortunately he didnt know her new pin so couldnt do the reverse.
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Old May 29, 2012, 11:15 pm
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Originally Posted by NJUPINTHEAIR
OP --

Just what credit card was on file? One of yours? If so, this is identity theft, and it is mail and wire fraud -- I do not know if the Houston PD knows this portion of the story, but I believe you are a victim as you neither gave consent nor knew of this indiviidual using your credit card to permit him entry to the room. It is an unauthroized use of the credit card and that is a crime.

Furthermore, the hotel has some real explaining to do as you indicated that they decline one credit card, but then authorize another's use, presumably with a different name. This is pure negligence, at the very least.

Keep us posted, as you ought to call the hotel again and get names, etc.
Ding ding ding, winner. The hotel employee who allowed charges to your card without. proper id, as well as the guy who bought the room (of course he would say charge it to. card on file, he knows it isn't his) both are at fault in unauthorized charges to your card. Also, as much as some people scoff at the idea, I think you should have some. extra PC points on top of your refunded points for their bungling of the situation. Or, you know, for being kind enough to not press charges for credit card fraud. And yeah, your account has definitely been comprimised, this was not an honest mixup.
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Old May 30, 2012, 2:36 am
  #56  
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Originally Posted by iamthehpt
To add insult to injury, the hotel upgraded him, based on MY platinum status.
Should make the bust/fall more dramatic.

Originally Posted by iamthehpt
Well, something odd is going on. The hotel guest returned to the hotel last night and was advised of the problem. He stated that "someone else" made the reservation for him and the person making the reservation just told him that the reservation was in my name. He went outside to call someone to straighten the matter out. He then returned a few minutes later and told the front desk that he was unable to reach the person who made the reservation for him, so he just paid for the room. 15K points are back in my account, but now I have to follow up with PC because the points back in the account should be 75K, not 15K. I sure hope he was charged for all 5 nights and NOT just the final night (which was a separate last minute reservation). My "honest mistake" theory seems less likely, since the person who made the reservation had to know that the reservation was made from my account since they advised the guest that the reservation was in my name. Looks like its time to follow up with the hotel and with PC again.
"Friend..." riiight. Just like the guy on the TV show cops when the cop found cocaine in his jeans pocket his response was, "hey man, it ain't my pants..."
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Old May 30, 2012, 5:38 am
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Originally Posted by tinkybelle
did the person get to stay and the pts come out of your account?
did you get them back.
I'm not trying to hijack the OP's thread, but in my case:

I had not been following my PC account closely for several years (was staying at Marriotts primarily). But I got active again when I picked up a Chase Priority Club credit card. I updated all the contact info in my PC account. A few months later, I received an email notifying me of an upcoming reservation that I had not made, and that's how I realized that something was going on. I phoned about the fraudulent reservation and learned that there had already been a few stays that were more than 1-2 years old. PC refused to refund me the points for those older stays.

Morals to the story: pay attention to activity in your account, keep your PC profile (and email address) up to date so you learn if something odd is going on, and call promptly if there is unauthorized activity.
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Old May 30, 2012, 6:37 am
  #58  
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I had once the opposite experience - someone else's stay posted to my account in a HI that I had used several times.
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Old May 30, 2012, 6:40 am
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Originally Posted by GetawaysRus
I'm not trying to hijack the OP's thread, but in my case:

I had not been following my PC account closely for several years (was staying at Marriotts primarily). But I got active again when I picked up a Chase Priority Club credit card. I updated all the contact info in my PC account. A few months later, I received an email notifying me of an upcoming reservation that I had not made, and that's how I realized that something was going on. I phoned about the fraudulent reservation and learned that there had already been a few stays that were more than 1-2 years old. PC refused to refund me the points for those older stays.

Morals to the story: pay attention to activity in your account, keep your PC profile (and email address) up to date so you learn if something odd is going on, and call promptly if there is unauthorized activity.
Another reason to love Award Wallet ^

Eh, what happened was theft. It's not like if you give it back it doesn't count.

Did the weasel charge anything to your card, like movies or something from a mini-bar?
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Old May 30, 2012, 7:01 am
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New PC account

I would also insist that PC assign you a new account number and transfer over all of your earnings and history,then close the one associated with this fraud.
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