Earlier quoted context omitted.
What’s funny about 420?
Look up 4/20.
Ah.
Well, that's pretty stupid. Are you going to rule out 911 and 666 and 13 too? (Not directed at you personally, it's a rhetorical question.)
Tell HN: Automatic fraud detection is making my life hell
361–370 of 406 posts
Re: Tell HN: Automatic fraud detection is making my life hell
#362Wrong assumptions programmers make about fraud prevention: -- A mobile phone number uniquely identifies a single person. -- Every person has a mobile phone number and they only have one mobile phone number. -- If a person's mobile phone number is associated with VoIP or Google Voice, that indicates fraud. -- Every person always has their mobile phone handy and it is always able to receive calls and SMS messages under…
The problem with many of these examples is that 99% of the time, it is a sign of fraud, and 1% of the time it’s a false positive. > If a person's mobile phone number is associated with VoIP or Google Voice, that indicates fraud. I’ve been using this heuristic (along with VPN and IP geo lookup) when screening job candidates after a massive influx of developers outside the US applying for US-only remote roles. I discov…
I’d be interested to see actual statistics on this.
I encounter anti-fraud challenges fairly regularly just because I have the same name as another family member and we once shared an address. Years ago.
A number of clients and friends have reported constant hassles wrought of poor anti-fraud implementations.
Older folks and less technically inclined are particularly at risk of falling through these cracks, as are frequent international travelers.
The 99%/1% thing is a good colloquialism but I don’t think the numbers would be there.
Loads of people are using VoIP numbers everyday for perfectly legit purposes. I’m not saying you’re making up your troubles. Just that clearly there are assumptions in anti-fraud technology generally that impact wide swaths of people, whether they understand why or not.
Re: Tell HN: Automatic fraud detection is making my life hell
#363Obviously I sympathize, but I find it extremely odd that OP is complaining about cards being declined but doesn't once explain whether he/she tried phoning their credit card to unblock? Because that generally works -- you call once, let them know you're traveling and where, and then your card works fine. Occasionally you have to call again for a specific high-value ($500+) transaction, but it's rarely more than a 5-m…
Unfortunately it’s not always as easy. Last year I tried to do a remittance of 3500€ and it failed on both a debit and credit card of my bank, blocking them. The bank called me to confirm the transactions, which I did. I tried again and they blocked the card again. So I did an instant transfer to another bank account and used its debit card without a hitch, as usual. Some banks just won’t let you use your money as yo…
Cards aren't generally meant for sending cash -- I honestly don't even know what you mean by sending a remittance using a credit card, or even a debit card. If you're talking about using e.g. Venmo or Zelle, they're generally intended for social transactions of tens/hundreds of dollars, not for thousands, and especially not for thousands cross-border.
For transferring thousands of dollars, that's what wire transfers are for, and basically every bank has supported them for decades. You shouldn't need any luck at all.
Re: Tell HN: Automatic fraud detection is making my life hell
#364Earlier quoted context omitted.
Also need credit cards for some hotels, and a high limit if you plan to stay at several hotels in quick succession, as it takes a few days to weeks for a hold to be released.
Why? Are they afraid of people emptying their minibar and leaving without paying after wetting their bedsheets?
theft of items and/or damage of property, yes
possibly to charge for overstays/ late checkouts / parking / other fees, too
Re: Tell HN: Automatic fraud detection is making my life hell
#365Earlier quoted context omitted.
This is a good description of the problem - kinda from both sides. Thank you! But based on this, wouldn't the right defense be to insist for some camera feed? 1) Most phones have a camera now - besides the plausible excuse of the candidate's computer not having a working one. 2) When no camera is working, it usually shouldn't be a big problem to postpose the interview for a few days. The time for a camera solution to…
How would a camera determine their place of residence?
Of course. The conversations point out that one frequent problem is the hiring process managed, interviewed and finally filled by different persons.
Place of residence is a different issue. Many people connect behind a VPN. A video feed during the interview would at least hint at the time zone they are in.
Third different issue is right to work in the US. This is an issue you have even in person in the US. Solved with legal documents. Social Security card, green card, US passport... then tax ID, then ongoing tax filings by the employer - Which may be a little easy to forge when presented in pictures but seem to still be sufficient legally. (And here camera helps with "person doesn't match ID".)
Anyway. You are right! Camera solves only part of the problem.
Re: Tell HN: Automatic fraud detection is making my life hell
#366Update, Amazon basically said they won't accept to remove the hold on my account, saying: > The information you supplied was reviewed by Amazon but we cannot remove the hold on your account at this time. For details, check for an email or text message from Amazon describing next steps. Please contact us for further concerns. I provided my visa + passport + card pic + selfie + Screens of latest Gift card order (email…
Update 2:
I received an email with very dismissal tone from amazon telling me the account will be closed. The funds are still there, I'm planning to apply for consumer complain against them, I'm willing to go to the end with this.
Re: Tell HN: Automatic fraud detection is making my life hell
#367Earlier quoted context omitted.
Or laziness? "Quick and dirty" is so tempting.
You have no idea how much justification it takes to reject orders. It is not done lightly.
I'm aware. There is also such a thing as "choosing one's battles", sure. You can't make a crusade of every little detail. But you must raise the issue.
Proposed way to do it: One argument I have used in the past on the job is that 0.5% here, 0.5% there, after 40 corners have been cut, does add up. It's enough to transform a project from "quick and dirty" to "customer support headache" and "bad press".
Re: Tell HN: Automatic fraud detection is making my life hell
#368Earlier quoted context omitted.
Or you know, your brain And don't accept candidates without video chatting first, or who behave weirdly in interviews
I'm not a fan of video chat during hiring interviews. It's a great way to discriminate (race, sex, age, disabilities) right out the gate
How do you communicate in real time? Even a phone call can lead to bias unfortunately (accent, name, etc). Unless you fully are anonymous it is hard to eliminate bias
Re: Tell HN: Automatic fraud detection is making my life hell
#369Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's not true at all. You can move money via ACH.
Are you sure? My USD Wise "account" has no sort code nor account number (unlike other currency accounts I hold), so nobody can initiate an ACH transfer into it. There is a button to initiate an ACH transfer "in" but it has to come from my linked bank account. Linked with the aforementioned Plaid.
I am 100% sure, I’ve been using Wise for the last year using ACH for deposits into my USD account
Re: Tell HN: Automatic fraud detection is making my life hell
#370Earlier quoted context omitted.
If Schwab would fix their account security to allow plain TOTP instead of the scam that is Symantec VIP, I would have nothing but good... well, there was the two times, yes, two times in a month that I had to spend hours on the phone telling them to stop letting people randomly transfer securities into my account without my consent. They assured me that (1) it would be illegal for me to refuse the request to take bac…
> If Schwab would fix their account security to allow plain TOTP instead of the scam that is Symantec VIP Symantec VIP is just TOTP with a proprietary app/enrollment process. It has been reverse engineered [1], allowing you to use any TOTP app. I have been accessing Schwab and other banking sites this way for years. [1] https://github.com/dlenski/python-vipaccess
I know, and I still resent them for making me run Python. Hell, even Ameriprise got their act together and has support for plain TOTP. I about fell out of my chair when I saw that.