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I ignored my bank's text alerts for 2 years because I thought they were spam, then someone in Tampa drained $1,847 from my checking
I always figured those texts saying 'did you spend $4.32 at a gas station 400 miles away' were just phishing bait, so I had them turned off in 2023. Big mistake. Some guy in Tampa got my card number somehow and ran up $1,847 over a weekend buying gift cards at 3 different stores. My bank caught it anyway and called me, but by then the damage was done and I had to wait 10 days for the money back. Now I have the alerts turned back on and I actually read them, because a 10 second text check beats 10 days of not having rent money. If your bank offers free instant text alerts for every card charge above like $1, just turn them on, seriously.
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hannahcraig17h ago
Why do banks even let you turn those off? I did the same thing for like a year and got hit for $600 at a Walmart two states away, and the worst part was my bank took 12 days to put it back. Turn the alerts on and read every single one, even the dumb $1 ones, because that small annoyance is way better than being broke while they "investigate.
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spencer_gonzalez117h ago
12 days is insane, they had your money and just sat on it while you probably had to borrow cash from somebody. And why is it always a Walmart two states away, do these thieves all shop at the same place or what. Alerts on is the move, a dumb dollar ping beats waiting two weeks to eat.
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