I caught it myself, pretty early, both times. If you catch it early it is not so bad. One was all local charges without the physical card. Driving around Christiansburg, going to WalMart, Kroger, Sheetz, and the vape shop. I wish the card company told me what happened because it felt skimmed versus some Romanian bot. Last legit charge...Red Lobster.

I'm thinking huh, that's wierd, soft or hard? OK, hard inquiry, looks like someone was trying to open a Discover card in my name. I'm really sure that happened b/c I was selling a ticket on Ticketmaster but had to sign up as a "seller" like I was going into business. Lot of strange things happened like getting email saying my refund was coming soon even though I had already received it type stuff. Either someone there or their Sellers unit got hacked.

There is a very specific reason Discover gets used for this. This isn’t random, and it’s not because Discover is “weak.” It’s because of how Discover sits in the credit ecosystem. Why Discover is commonly used as a “test” lender 1️⃣ Discover often allows applications with partial SSN Many lenders quietly allow: Partial SSN entry early in the application Or defer full SSN validation until later steps Fraud rings exploit this because it lets them answer: “Does this identity resolve to a real credit file?” They’re not trying to get the card yet — just to see if the system recognizes the person. 2️⃣ Fast automated decisioning Discover: Uses highly automated pre-screening Often returns decisions (or blocks) immediately That makes it ideal for “probe and move on” attempts. A slow lender isn’t useful for testing. 3️⃣ Lower friction, fewer human checkpoints early Compared to some big banks: Fewer early-stage document uploads Fewer CAPTCHA-style roadblocks Cleaner online flow Again: not a flaw — just good UX that fraudsters also exploit. 4️⃣ Predictable bureau pull behavior Fraudsters know: Which bureau Discover tends to pull first How freezes are handled What messages trigger a mailed response That helps them learn: Is this identity frozen? Is it monitored? Is it worth trying elsewhere? In your case, the answer they got was “no.” 5️⃣ Discover mails quickly This matters more than you’d think. Fraud rings track: Whether mail is returned Whether address updates are allowed later Discover’s quick mailing helps them test address validity. Again — your freeze cut this off immediately. Why this doesn’t mean Discover is unsafe Important distinction: Discover is not easier to steal from It’s easier to test identities against Actual card issuance still requires: Full SSN Credit pull Identity verification Address confirmation That’s why no account opened. Why fraudsters likely stop after this Once they see: Credit frozen Fraud alert active Immediate block They: Mark the identity as “hardened” Move to easier targets Fraud is volume-based, not personal. Big-picture takeaway This wasn’t someone “coming after” your wife. It was: Automated Low-effort Instantly shut down You effectively slammed the door before they got a foot inside.

I like to understand the why and how of fraud attempts...so yeah, get the low effort high volume thing and one out of 10000 people will fall for it. Since I rarely if ever need credit, I just made sure all the credit bureaus are frozen now. Always trying to cut down on my surface visibility. So I guess the Ticketmaster thing was just a really big coincidence.

Mine have ALWAYS been locked. We went to refinance and the lender said, "we can't pull a credit report".. I remembered, and unlocked one for 48 hours. Asked the lender which one they used, unlocked that one and told them they had 48 hours to check. It's really pretty simple and VERY good for all of us to do.

didn't really need the loan but it was a 0.9% incentive rate so with a little inflation I come out ahead. The funny thing about that is i haven't borrowed money in a long time, so yeah, unlocked it to get get the special rate then lock it up again. By borrowing some and paying it off regularly made my credit scores go up, seems backward to me, but I guess they didn't have any records of my paying back loans (credit cards?) so they've got something to go on now. ** Edited by `lag at 2/12/2026, 6:07:09 PM ** Edited by `lag at 2/12/2026, 6:07:58 PM

throwing it at us. I bought my car on Mercedes credit. It too was .9%. I'm making a hell of a lot more on the money I DIDN'T pay upfront, and it does help keep your scores high. I was not comfortable having any debt, but I realized how much I was making on the money leaving it alone. It's all crazy as hell...

make sure 2FA is set on everything!

If scammers can convince the phone company they're you and port your telephone number to one of their devices then they can get by the 2FA authentication, in fact the second factor becomes the hole, eg, reset passwords to your accounts b/c they send the security number to their phone instead of yours.. Pretty easy just go to your service provider and it will be somewhere in there on the website. ** Edited by `lag at 2/13/2026, 9:17:57 AM

wife's numbers. I had never heard of that, or considered doing it, before. I try to stay up on these kinds of things, but missed that one completely.. It took all of 30 seconds..Thanks again 'lag!

that goes out and reads youtube stuff on it. Also I think the phone companies have gotten more saavy in the last year, eg, making it easier to set up like your experience. But now - in theory - a weak-minded or corrupt agent can't change it.

is a good idea to remind people to lock things down like credit firms, cell phones, don't give out info to strangers, don't panic when someone says they're going to cut off your internet access if you don't act right now, watch for card skimmmers....etc. etc. ** Edited by `lag at 2/13/2026, 9:27:59 AM

training when I was still working. STILL, it's a good refresher..Also, I'd never even heard of the phone thing, even though it is readily available on the Verizon website if you can get past them tryin to sell you everything first.

When you get your new one, re-add it.

** Edited by astrohokie at 2/11/2026, 9:30:47 PM ** Edited by astrohokie at 2/11/2026, 9:34:10 PM