Use your CC at lowes ? Check your charges

[jimbomaybe]

Pick up a ceiling fan at Wildwood Lowes Feb 20th ,card swipe 10;04 our time,(EST) looked at my chargers on line and found my CC was charged $81.27 9:53 CST at a Lowes in North Wilkesboro NC , CC info manually entered , might be a good idea to check your charges , I am sure Wilkesboro is lovely with many nice people , but I have never been there

[villagetinker]

I have had similar experiences with other credit cards, it appears that criminals just enter random numbers and if one gets through, they immediately charge items against it. my point this was probably not a problem unique to Lowe's it just happened to be a Lowe's account number. To guard against this, I have email alerts on all of me cards and bank accounts, I know with 15 minutes of any charges and can take appropriate action if necessary.

[JGibson]

Why folks don't utilize Apple Pay is beyond me.

Apple pay generates a random number every time you use it and the retailer never gets your actual card number.

If a restaurant or any business doesn't accept Apple Pay they get cash.

If you don't want to use Apple Pay most major banks offer virtual cards which is also some random number and not your card number and can only be used once.

[MrFlorida]

email alerts is the way to go... I have them on all of my cards.

[4$ALE]

Pick up a ceiling fan at Wildwood Lowes Feb 20th ,card swipe 10;04 our time,(EST) looked at my chargers on line and found my CC was charged $81.27 9:53 CST at a Lowes in North Wilkesboro NC , CC info manually entered , might be a good idea to check your charges , I am sure Wilkesboro is lovely with many nice people , but I have never been there

North Wilkesboro, N.C. is close to Lowes H.Q. in Mooresville, N.C. - Strange coincidence ? :shrug:

[Bill14564]

Why folks don't utilize Apple Pay is beyond me.

Easy explanation: Not every vendor takes Apple Pay, not everyone has an iPhone, not everyone is comfortable giving Apple their CC information.

Apple pay generates a random number every time you use it and the retailer never gets your actual card number.

Similar to the random code sent when using Tap-to-Pay with a credit card.

If a restaurant or any business doesn't accept Apple Pay they get cash.
I prefer cashless and don't carry much cash at all. Someone steals my cash - I'm outta luck. Someone steals my wallet - I can call to cancel cards. Someone uses my card without authorization - $50 out of my pocket at most but more likely $0 (though with the aggravation of getting a new card and number)

If you don't want to use Apple Pay most major banks offer virtual cards which is also some random number and not your card number and can only be used once.
Haven't heard of virtual cards yet. Virtual numbers were great but only useful for online purchases. A separate card with a virtual number attached would be quite handy.

[Arctic Fox]

I have email alerts on all of me cards and bank accounts, I know with 15 minutes of any charges and can take appropriate action if necessary.

That is the ideal solution for us as well. Highly recommended, if your credit card provider offers it.

[retiredguy123]

That is the ideal solution for us as well. Highly recommended, if your credit card provider offers it.
Yes, I have alerts on all of my financial accounts. I once had a PENFED Visa credit card that took 3 days for a charge to be posted, so I cancelled the card.

[Ignatz]

North Wilkesboro, N.C. is close to Lowes H.Q. in Mooresville, N.C. - Strange coincidence ? :shrug:
Absolutely true. Lowe’s moved their corporate headquarters to Mooresville but still retained operations at the former location. They still have phone sales and customer service jobs in the old hq building.

[mntlblok]

I am sure Wilkesboro is lovely with many nice people , but I have never been there
Merlefest is fun if you can get the weather to cooperate. MerleFest (https://merlefest.org/)

[rsmurano]

That’s why I have LifeLock. I know of every CC purchase over a certain limit, every transaction made by my brokerage company (shares bought/sold, dividends), every bill paid, plus much more.

[Girlcopper]

email alerts is the way to go... I have them on all of my cards.
My Visa card notifies me at the time the card is being used by text message asking if this is a valid purchase. If you don’t respond or answer no, the card doesn’t go thru. If you forget to bring your cell phone when you know you’ll have to respond to use the card well, shame on you

[retiredguy123]

That’s why I have LifeLock. I know of every CC purchase over a certain limit, every transaction made by my brokerage company (shares bought/sold, dividends), every bill paid, plus much more.
I don't have LifeLock, but I get the same information by email by just setting up alerts on the financial websites. My credit card limit for alerts and other transactions is zero.

[daca55]

Every time I make a purchase with Capital One CC they send me a text letting me know that a charge has been placed on my card. If it’s not me I know it within 5 minutes of purchase. If it is out my area where I make usual transactions they will text me and ask if I made this transaction. They are very good! They even let me know if I over tip. I was at a local bar that I frequent and I left the bartender a 35% tip and capital one sent me a text asking if I meant to do that. I did but it’s good to know someone is watching! Strongly recommend Capital one CC!

[jimbomaybe]

I have had similar experiences with other credit cards, it appears that criminals just enter random numbers and if one gets through, they immediately charge items against it. my point this was probably not a problem unique to Lowe's it just happened to be a Lowe's account number. To guard against this, I have email alerts on all of me cards and bank accounts, I know with 15 minutes of any charges and can take appropriate action if necessary.
I have alerts but set the limit too high, adjustments have been made

[rochellepfaff]

Why folks don't utilize Apple Pay is beyond me.

Apple pay generates a random number every time you use it and the retailer never gets your actual card number.

If a restaurant or any business doesn't accept Apple Pay they get cash.

If you don't want to use Apple Pay most major banks offer virtual cards which is also some random number and not your card number and can only be used once.

I believe you have to have an Iphone to have Apple Pay. Not everyone has an Iphone.

[NotGolfer]

My other half received a bill in the mail recently for a Prime credit card used back in December. He doesn't shop on Amazon---I do, but with a regular CC and it wasn't my charge. He had an Amazon Prime card, never used, still on the sheet it came in---called the company and executed a fraud case. They closed out the account and he destroyed the card.
I've had my same CC for a long time that I use frequently but it got compromised TWICE in a relatively short period of time. It's always important to check your statements on a regular basis. What someone else said here---thieves use bots to hi-jack numbers then they try it out to see if it works.
Up north---I had a CC that I'd used but then didn't close the account for some reason, but it had actually been open for maybe 2 yrs or better of my none-use. Got a statement for a considerable amount that I hadn't made----I reported it and the CC company took care of it. Wonder why our interest rates on CC are so high---it's to pay those fees, I'd wager. I try to pay off my card monthly now....and I shop with Amazon and other entities quite often.

[JRcorvette]

Why folks don't utilize Apple Pay is beyond me.

Apple pay generates a random number every time you use it and the retailer never gets your actual card number.

If a restaurant or any business doesn't accept Apple Pay they get cash.

If you don't want to use Apple Pay most major banks offer virtual cards which is also some random number and not your card number and can only be used once.

I have Apple Pay but don’t know how to use it. I will have to research that.

[OhioBuckeye]

What’s wrong with the charges, is it to high or to low. You never said what the price of the ceiling fan was.

[retiredguy123]

I believe you have to have an Iphone to have Apple Pay. Not everyone has an Iphone.
More people use Android phones than IPhones.

[jimbomaybe]

What’s wrong with the charges, is it to high or to low. You never said what the price of the ceiling fan was.

My bad , my post wasn't clear enough, I picked up and paid for a c/ fan at Wildwood Lowes, well and good, less than an hour later my CC was charged $81,00 for a purchase at another Lowes store in NC, manually entered , not swiped

[JGibson]

Easy explanation: Not every vendor takes Apple Pay, not everyone has an iPhone, not everyone is comfortable giving Apple their CC information.



Similar to the random code sent when using Tap-to-Pay with a credit card.


I prefer cashless and don't carry much cash at all. Someone steals my cash - I'm outta luck. Someone steals my wallet - I can call to cancel cards. Someone uses my card without authorization - $50 out of my pocket at most but more likely $0 (though with the aggravation of getting a new card and number)


Haven't heard of virtual cards yet. Virtual numbers were great but only useful for online purchases. A separate card with a virtual number attached would be quite handy.

So you would trust some waitress at Cody's or some other restaurant before you would trust the richest and most secure company in the world with your CC?

LOL!

[TomSpasm]

The OP has missed the point. The NC city on his charge was/is the original home of Lowes corporate. From Google Maps:

"North Wilkesboro is the birthplace and original home of Lowe's Home Improvement, which continues to have a major presence in the community." So they are using their original corp address on credit card charges. Nothing untoward going on, unless the amounts were different, which he has failed to clarify (to me anyway) in 2 separate posts.

[Bill14564]

So you would trust some waitress at Cody's or some other restaurant before you would trust the richest and most secure company in the world with your CC?

LOL!

More than 180 days a year I trust some waitress with my credit card. Over 25 years now and have had my number stolen twice. With all the breaches happening at the time, it is far more likely that the card info was stolen from a large company rather than a small restaurant.

Plus, only a very small percentage of restaurants take Apple Pay since that would require tap-to-pay at the table or paying over the internet.

[Bill14564]

The OP has missed the point. The NC city on his charge was/is the original home of Lowes corporate. From Google Maps:

"North Wilkesboro is the birthplace and original home of Lowe's Home Improvement, which continues to have a major presence in the community." So they are using their original corp address on credit card charges. Nothing untoward going on, unless the amounts were different, which he has failed to clarify (to me anyway) in 2 separate posts.

It appears he clarified that in post #21 about 20 minutes before this post.

It seems he made one purchase but received two charges with different amounts and from different locations.

Do you have any proof that they are using their original corp address on credit card charges? That would be odd but I don't have any recent charges to look at.

[Bill14564]

More people use Android phones than IPhones.

That appears to be true globally but here in the US the numbers still slightly favor iPhones.

[Bill14564]

I have Apple Pay but don’t know how to use it. I will have to research that.

For me - Apple Pay means using my phone for tap to pay rather than taking a card out of my wallet.

I have two credit cards that I have stored in my Apple Wallet. I believe I used the app for the individual card to do that. I also did something to allow them to be used with Apple Pay though I don't know if that was through an Apple Pay configuration or through the credit card app.

Now that they are stored and configured I can:
- Tap the phone to pay rather than getting the card out of my wallet
- On some sites, pay with Apple Pay by double clicking the right button rather than typing the credit card number, expiration date, security code, name, address, and phone number

I believe there is a Google Wallet for Android phones but I don't have one so I don't know how it works.

[Topspinmo]

Get use to it cause it’s only going to get worse.

[ton80]

It appears he clarified that in post #21 about 20 minutes before this post.

It seems he made one purchase but received two charges with different amounts and from different locations.

Do you have any proof that they are using their original corp address on credit card charges? That would be odd but I don't have any recent charges to look at.

I looked at my CC account and looked at purchases over the last year. All show the store location , Store number, and the specific items purchased. The CC company is Synchrony Bank out in Utah. None show Lowes HQ address.

[manaboutown]

My weird Lowes CC experiences

In CA during 2011 I used a CC to order a couple shower grab bars to be delivered, which they were. One year later, in 2012, almost to the day, while I was away on a trip Lowes delivered a duplicate pair of grab bars and left them leaning against my front gate, where I found them when I returned. Lowes had charged my CC a second time. I ended up returning them in person to the nearest store where a clerk gave me some mumbo-jumbo excuse about their computer system.

I used Lowes in 2023 as a supplier for some upgrades to a few apartments in NM. Among others I was dealing with the department that measures and then uses a contractor (I presume) to install countertops. It was a nightmare as they made several mistakes with the countertops and also with the CC billing. I ended up canceling with Lowes and finding another outfit.

[keepsake]

I prefer cash, but Lowe's OVERCHARGES ANOTHER 5% if you don't use their Lowes Card.

Idiots.

[dpmers]

Wilkesboro is Lowes headquarters

[Ignatz]

Wilkesboro WAS Lowes headquarters

Fixed it for you!

[jimbomaybe]

The OP has missed the point. The NC city on his charge was/is the original home of Lowes corporate. From Google Maps:

"North Wilkesboro is the birthplace and original home of Lowe's Home Improvement, which continues to have a major presence in the community." So they are using their original corp address on credit card charges. Nothing untoward going on, unless the amounts were different, which he has failed to clarify (to me anyway) in 2 separate posts.
My CC statement gives cites the address of the charge , the fan I bought was listed as the Lowes in Wildwood, the other charge was made in NC a little less than an hour later, the charge in NC was not swiped but put in manually, not by me or anyone authorized to use the card, I think the intent was that the charge would go unnoticed as I shop at lowes frequently.

[OhioBuckeye]

No you’re OK with your question but I guess I was just thinking that’s probably what a fan would cost today with the way our economy’s going!

[Dilligas]

email alerts is the way to go... I have them on all of my cards.

Text alerts are much faster than email....you usually get the alert before you leave the store.

[retiredguy123]

Text alerts are much faster than email....you usually get the alert before you leave the store.
I use email because I don't want to hear the text notification sound. But, my email alerts seem to come immediately after the purchase and before I leave the store.

[Bill14564]

Text alerts are much faster than email....you usually get the alert before you leave the store.

email / text message
great taste / less filling

Some like email, others like text. I can get an email just as quickly as I can get a text message. If I'm in the store making the purchase then I have no need to see the alert. If I'm sitting at home with my phone in the other room, I'll see an email on my laptop before I'll see the text message on my phone.

[retiredguy123]

I have alerts but set the limit too high, adjustments have been made
My alerts are set at zero.

[asianthree]

I use email because I don't want to hear the text notification sound. But, my email alerts seem to come immediately after the purchase and before I leave the store.

One can change the sound for text, or I have my texts zero sound but vibrates differently than emails.

[JGibson]

Text alerts are much faster than email....you usually get the alert before you leave the store.

More crafty thieves will do a SIM swap first so the text message doesn't go to your phone but to their phone.

Low level phone retail workers are more than willing to sell your number so it can be SIM swapped.

The best alert system is a authentication app but so many banks don't use them.

For example if you sign into a your Google account on a friend's computer it will make you go into the YouTube app on your phone to confirm a secret number and that it is you.

Text messages can't be 100% relied on. Also you can inside your carriers settings set to lock you SIM but employees can still override that.

I also suggest turning on Push Notifications from the actual banking app in addition to text alerts.