joyful1235

She actually told you that? I tried back twice yesterday and CSR would just say same thing over and over. I'm sorry I would like to help you but first you must use the automated system. Finally I said give me your IT department then, because your automated system is broken. I asked her- do they tell you when things like this go down? She said no we don't have access to that information.
I'm off to talk to a very helpful manager at Kroger who said she could help me fill out a fraud investigation. I will see how that goes. I'm not expecting to get my money any time soon.

fungusamungus

After going through hundreds of US Bank VGC over the years, I finally had my first serious issue today.

I purchased one $500 VGC through self-checkout at Kroger. I attempted to log into the website via my phone from the parking lot. I got an "oops something went wrong error." I had heard enough fraud stories regarding these that I was pretty sure I was in for a lengthy hold on the phone to resolve this.

I waited about 30 more minutes and the issue persisted. Calling the number on the back of the card immediately routed me the customer service. I was on hold for about 20 minutes before someone "answered" but nobody was speaking on their end. I could hear people talking in the background and typing, but despite me yelling like an idiot nobody ever picked up. I hung up and called again and was on hold for 30 minutes this time. Once an agent answered, he gave me the runaround about not being able to pull up a card by the number I had entered and insisted on using the automated system. I told him repeatedly that the automated system got me to him and that wasn't working. He told me there was nothing he could do other than have me hang up and try again. I demanded to speak to a manager since I had been on hold for nearly an hour at this point.

Thankfully the hold to speak to the manager was only 10 minutes or so. For whatever reason, she did not have an issue pulling up the card number. It's about this time that I was finally able to log into the website with my card information. I also called the number from my wife's cell phone and validated that I could actually get to the security code prompt and have my balance read to me. However, the manager said that there was fraud on the card from a few weeks ago before the card was activated. Everything looked fine at this point, and no fraudulent transactions were visible on the website, but she insisted that they replace the card. That seemed like it would be the best course of action.

I'm going to avoid US Bank VGC from now on, as this is simply not worth the hassle. I have a local grocery chain that has Vanillas anyway. It was just so convenient going through self-checkout at Kroger to avoid the raised eyebrows and gasps from 15 year old bag boy that thinks $500 might as well be a million.

bubu-SNA

I'm dealing with what other posters above are describing after what looks to be some sort of fraud flag on my newly purchased gift card. How a class action lawsuit has not spawned out of their behavior is surprising. Gift cards are a regulated financial instrument!

My adventure so far. I bought a $500 gift card at Ralph's. Tried to use it, declined at multiple locations. Card is probably flagged for fraud is my guess. Tried to go online to see what is going on with it but can't get website to login the card # and proceed to registration page. It just loops and I eventually get the "call the # on the back" from the website, and that's where the real fun starts!

Multi-hour holds to speak to reps in India who refuse to assist because I have not used the automated authentication system. There is no automated authentication system in the call queue tree! Regardless what I say they insist they can't help. Requesting to speak to a supervisor leads to them going through gymnastics of trying to get me to hang up (I guess they are flagged for disconnecting?). "Let me get your # and the supervisor will call you back", "there is a 2 hour hold to speak to a supervisor", "the supervisor will tell you the same thing", "I can't get through to a supervisor". Insisting on speaking to the supervisor leads to them placing me on multiple holds and eventually disconnecting the line silently. The magical kicker is the survey at the end of how they did in handling the call!!! lets just say "extremely dissatisfied".

I don't have much recourse with Kroger as I don't have the original purchase receipt. I can possibly call during US business hours and pray I get someone in the US?...or keep hammering till they get a supervisor on the phone since that seems to be the path through this s***show? Anyone have suggestions on how to proceed?

The cardholder agreement is fascinating and full of threats about who you will pay costs if the arbitrator rules against you however I don't see how their instance on arbitration is binding on an end user who has not agreed to or signed anything. Being the rightful legal owner of the card does not force one into arbitration by the mere fact of possession. It's disappointing that cockroach financial institutions of this nature are allowed to operate under whatever state issued them their charter.

fungusamungus

That was the secret sauce for me. I did not have a lengthy wait or have them hang up on me fortunately. As much as it sucks, that is probably the quickest resolution, at least in my experience yesterday.

joyful1235

I got hope after reading your post, so I decided to try the phone system again instead of manager at the grocery.

I finally got through to a supervisor to after getting a CSR. Total on hold 1 hour. She, the sup, put me on hold to talk to their "technical" department. She then came back and said they tried the card in the automated system and it worked. She said to try the automated system again, I must be punching in the numbers wrong. I was about to explode. I've been calling for 3 days, I did not punch the numbers in wrong! She offered to escalate my issue, and then transferred my to the flipping automated system, where, guess what, no place to enter my CVV.
I'm going to Kroger Monday and try that route. The ineptitude of the customer service for these cards is astounding.

DSMguyms

apparently USB customer service Phone/IT system is having hiccup/issues lately. I called twice this afternoon on a compromised card, talked to 2 US based rep(hold time over 30 mins each time). both told me I didn't go though "automated" system, after I said there is no "automated" system, I am just calling the number on the back, the first guy hang up on me.
the 2nd lady was more patient, she said her end shows I didn't type in the cvv2 code (3 digit code on the back of the card), I told her their message did ask me for the 3 digit cards after I typed in the 16 digit card number. She said her end shows no cvv2 code was received, so the card can't be verified w/o the cvv2 code. she said she will report the issue to their IT, asked me to call back in 2 biz days. they can't do anything if their system can't receive the cvv2 code when we call and type over the phone.

bubu-SNA

India again @ 8:30am PST after a 27 minute hold. Insists I have to "validate" through their automated system...holding on for a supervisor until they hang-up on me I guess.

Lovelabs2

So your saying that when calling number on card you weren’t taken initially to auto system to verify card balance? My experience is that auto system is default when calling. If auto system sends you directly to CSR than card has a problem and may be blocked by USB due to suspicious activity in card. They have been blocking many cards lately since they bombarded with fraud on their cards.

joyful1235

I'm having no luck today. If the automated system is down for CVV, wouldn't it be down for everyone?
I can't register online either.

bubu-SNA

The auto system asks for your card #. Upon entering the card # it auto-transfers the call to customer service without the opportunity to enter the CCV2 verification. It's a chicken and egg problem...entering a compromised cards # dumps you straight to a rep who in turn insists on you auto-verifying.

Lovelabs2

Yup…that is the case I experienced also whenever I call. Never asks for CCV with auto system. Only using online site to check balance asks for it in my experience…..but the CSR never sent me back to auto system to verify. That’s a new wrinkle.

USB CS has really turned into a s—t show recently. I avoid them at all costs now.

ericdabbs

People should not be going after the grocery store managers. They cannot do anything about this and unlike $500 VGC frauds in the past where the scammers were tampering the packages of the cards, it seems like that is not the case anymore and the scammers have evolved into being able to just run an algorithm where the scammers are able to target the first 12 digits of a card series and run through a program to guess the last 4 digits of that card series. I am very careful about inspecting the packaging of cards to look for any tampering and the past few USB VGCs that ended up getting scammed had zero signs of package tampering. The fault is on USB for issuing such a crappy card system with not enough variations along the way. The fact that when the CSRs say that they had to block the card because the scammers attempted to use the card 1-2 weeks from the date you purchased the card tells you something. USB needs to do a better job of altering the first 12 digits of a card series so it is not so predictable and susceptible to this type of skimming.

When you call the automated system on the back of the card and when entering the card number automatically prompts you do the CSR you should already know the card has been tampered. Unfortunately that is just the reality with USB VGCs nowadays and the only sort of implementation that USB has tried recently was requiring any new user to change the PIN upon purchase before the card can be used. There are several resolutions to this issue. One is either don't buy any more USB VGCs if this is becoming too much of a headache or two call the CSR and explain to them that you are just calling in to check if a particular card has had any attempted purchases on the card before buying it to avoid the headache. I have personally done option 2 to check up on 2 cards at a grocery store and the CSR was able to confirm 1 card was tampered and 1 card was clean.

joyful1235

I called the number on the back again today, being sent in the same circle of enter your CVV into automated system. Today they said they are having technical issues. But, if that's the case, it should be the same for everyone that calls in.
I'm not given the option to do anything with this card. They won't tell me if there is a balance, if it's compromised, or if there is fraud involved. They tell me to validate through an automated system with the CVV, and there is no way to do that
Our managers at Kroger are great. I know them. She offered to help me and if it's not resolved, I can fill out a form for Kroger to send to investigate fraud. I'm not "going after" anyone. It's a valid option for getting assistance.

I wanted to add, if you can speak Spanish, there is no hold time. I knew enough Spanish to get through the prompt asking for my card number. It started ringing through to CSR and a live person answered immediately. Lol. I wish I knew enough to have a full conversation. The CVV problem still might not have been resolved, but at least there is less hold time! Ha


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Lovelabs2

The scammers have been using scripts/algorithms for quite some time….years. This is nothing new. No need to tamper with cards in store…that’s sooo old school scamming. USB must be MORONS to make it so easy to clone cards since the first 8-12 numbers are same on all cards! I can’t imagine the $$$ it’s costing them to replace funds used by scammers and not purchasers. That’s is probably why they are being proactive and blocking cards before purchase due to suspicious activity…and requiring the PIN change before use. This action is now causing real purchasers having to jump thru hoops to use the card. I also think that draining the full $500…like all MSers do….is being scrutinized more now as suspicious.

Avoid USB cards and the aggravation for the next few months….I will never buy them now. Switched to CVS and Albertsons, Vons, Safeway Vanillas with zero problems.

Honeybadger1

Soo it seems that we all experience symptoms of the same disease...

For almost three weeks in my area it was not possible to use the USB GC either at Wally or Kroger in the normal ms way. Error messages at Wally varied from #57 to #1 but always the same result, not authorized. Meantime the cards worked at StarBs and other small debit purchases. Even during this period it was occasionally possible to cash for small residuals 30USD or so during MO purchase. At that time VV worked normally at all locations.

Reports here vary on timing and area of the blocking (e.g. from this thread it seems PacNW on Jan 24th, southwest a few days later, midwest very little or no blocking). This reaction seems related to the proportion of fraud attempts on the cards that were already in the grocery rack because at one location I bought eight and they all were blocked because of pre-purchase attempts at use. Others on this thread have described the similar inconsistency.

So it would seem the blocking was initiated by USB because I observed it started at the same instant, well within 10 mins, at Wally (MoneyGram) and Kroger (WU). Seems unlikely both MO issuers blocked the same way at the same moment, but possible maybe.

During this period I had loads of USB GC to liquidate and I had to use the intermediate step (VV at WalGs) and then cashing out. Obv not good timewise and inefficient but for a while it looked like a permanent block was a possibility and I had to billpay AX you know the drill...

The last two days I have been able to cash out USB for MOs at both Wally and Kroger but only with cards either a) replaced and with new PIN assigned after calling in or b) with specific new cards, never the default silver-black packaged ones that seem to have a very high proportion of inactivated cards. I have located one row of a different design at my grocery that now work consistently but I am holding off on larger-scale USB use until this cools off and I get all my inactivated cards replaced. I still have a number in their replacement "pipeline" after calling in to register them and request. The replacement timeframe is definitely seven business days or more.

The reason for the sudden surge in USB GC fraud may be the recently-introduced system of using last four digits of the card number as the debit PIN by default. This greatly simplifies the coding task of the scamscripters and let's be real here the timing and "response" of USB circumstantially supports this view. First USB block everything, in panic, and with no notice, then they take temp measures to mitigate by enforcing callins for new PIN. That's basically returning to their own old system that worked well enough you know with the small tearoff paper with a separate PIN number inside the package.... and now they have a massive backlog that their call centers in PI, India and even US can't manage. I've talked with all three locations these past two weeks at length as I bet you have.

These problems are not originating in the grocery store. They are at the back end of USB. Database scraping/hacking of GC numbers. I don't believe this situation will persist for the good reason that we fellow ms monsters are the source of their profits...the racks at most local Kroger are no longer depleted over the week as they used to be LOL! Still it's annoying and timewasting and I hope whoever came up at corporate with the "idea" of using last four digits as PIN is now regretting their naievite.