WRITTEN ON January 20th, 2006 BY William Heath AND STORED IN Uncategorized

I just ordered a dishwasher from John Lewis online. I get referred to a different web site which asks to check my card details (see attached). It rejects the details. But they’re definitely correct. Do I call the number given? Is this a kosher John Lewis service, or a kosher RBofS one, or a phish?

…to be continued…

8 Responses to “Is this a phishing attack fraud?”

 
Johnny Mnemonic wrote on January 21st, 2006 3:01 am :

There’s nothing attached to the message, so I can’t see which “different” web site you’re talking about, but I’d lay a pound to a penny that you’re a victim not of phishing but of the far more worrying “banks halfheartedly attempting to cut card fraud without actually spending any money”. I suspect that the site you were redirected to was the RBS 3D Secure site: 3D Secure is the Visa/MasterCard standard for annoying people trying to buy things by pestering them for an extra password that they can’t remember. In true banking style, it’s an offer you can’t understand.

Here’s the thing: in order to comply with this scheme you have to mess about registering at your bank using some forms that don’t work on many web browsers (I couldn’t book a flight at BA because of this, and when I rang up to complain the BA person told me that it was, essentially, tough: I was using a Macintosh and the bank page doesn’t work on Apple computers for some unfathomable reason). But since you are not liable for any fraudulent use of your credit card number on the Internet anyway (this is why you should never, ever, use a debit card on the Internet), all of the faffing about delivers no benefit to you whatsoever.

Complain to John Lewis — nothing upsets retailers more than bank antics preventing a single sale.

W wrote on January 21st, 2006 4:09 am :

The web site is called http://www.securesuite.co.uk/rbs and it asks for name, DoB, three-digit security code, expiry date and email address

John Lettice wrote on January 21st, 2006 4:32 pm :

I signed up for one of these systems with Clydesdale Mastercard in an excess of zeal a couple of years ago, and no, I can never remember the password.

Funnily enough, the times I remember it kicking in have tended to be at John Lewis, and double funnily, I’m currently poised to buy a new dishwasher from John Lewis if the one I’ve got screws up one more load.

If you’re still up for that jar next week perhaps we could discuss security, John Lewis and dishwasher tech. My experience of the last two years suggests to me that the AEG 70530 sucks. (_:

Johnny Mnemonic wrote on January 22nd, 2006 5:41 pm :

“http://www.securesuite.co.uk/rbs”

I tried it and it wouldn’t load, the page is just blank on my Macintosh. Therefore I deduce that it’s either so badly coded it must be from a bank or it uses some dumb Windows-only extension in Internet Explorer and is probably from a bank: phishers would have written the page in XHTML/CSS with working cross-platform scripting just like any other modern web site.

Fergal Daly wrote on February 5th, 2007 1:42 pm :

I also got this page in a purchase from a good online retailer. I don’t think this is a fraud however it is incredibly stupid. Banks are now actually putting some effort into training customers to ignore the logos and check the address bar and what do they do? Launch a program requesting their customers to give their intimate details site covered in their logo but not at their address!

Nathan wrote on April 6th, 2007 7:59 am :

i agree with fergal first thing i did was look at the address bar different from the site i was on its the worst idea ever its a stupid system and when u try and go to the securesite.co.uk it doesnt even load what bullsh#t googled it to see if it was dodgy but what a poor system

Fergal Daly wrote on April 6th, 2007 11:47 am :

1 half of my bank agrees with me – I phoned the internet banking line and got someone to talk about security. They agreed and said they had raise the issue already but it was the credit-card side of the house doing this. They told me to phone them anyway as the more people complaining the better chance of changing it.

Swiss Portal wrote on September 13th, 2007 8:31 pm :

d00d ! Stay away from that site . Checkout phishing forums for any info about the link . Also u talked about calling at the given number , I’d suggest u go ahead and do that .