Google ads charged me $250 on my private debit account!

[SanctusBeads]

Has anyone had this happen to them too?

I checked my bank account today and saw that Google Ads had charged me $250 on one day and about $8 on another day, completely without my knowledge or authorization. I have sold 3 items that Etsy advertised on Google and paid the fees here on Etsy through my account already with each one being about $7. I never signed up for any separate Google account nor have I sold anything remotely close to $250 worth! I called my bank  and canceled the card and put in a claim to have the charges cancelled (I hope they do!). But how did this happen? I have now opted out of Offsite ads completely even though I got a few sales through it, it seems not worth it! But how on earth did Google Ads get my debit card info and charge me separately?? 

[audreytherese · Accepted solution]

While I can't say for sure, it could be completely unrelated to Etsy. I'm currently on my third debit card in as many months because my card kept getting suspicious activity, even though I'm very careful with it. I know one of the attempted charges had to do with Google. Since I knew I hadn't signed up for anything, I had them deny the transaction and cancelled the card. 

[GieseDeseiGns]

When was in CA they loved my debit card at Walmart and it never left my wallet, but, it went on a spending spree for several someones.

[BagmakerSupply]

@SanctusBeads: Are you sure that the charges are actually from Google Ads? It is unlikely that this is related to Etsy or offsite ads - more likely you have been phished, scammed, or hacked. If the charges are actually from Google, there should be a transaction number attached to them that Google can backtrack and see who is running ads on your card.

[Amaradorn]

Sounds like someone stole your card details and used it for their own ad spending. I can't see how it's connected to Etsy in any way, unless it was one of the Etsy scammers. You did the right thing reporting it and cancelling your card.

[hopeandjoystudios]

My Paypal got suspicious charges before for FB ads. one was $10 and the others under a dollar but I immediately canceled the card and disputed the charges. I have never advertised on FB! The small ones were like they were checking to see if I was paying attention and then they jumped to 10 while I was trying to cancel it!

[SnappyBaby]

I agree with others... I don't think it is Etsy related. Etsy REALLY likes to keep their money in Etsy and not allow charges outside of them. There are soooooo many companies out there that have not reported that information has been stolen. My sister and I had a checking account together at a bank online. We had both opted to not have debit cards sent to us because we wouldn't use them and wanted to reduce the chances of them being stolen.  Within 6 months, the accounts had been charged through an imaginary debit card through a company in a state that we had never been. In the end, we found out the BANK had been compromised! If it's really a Google Ads charge and not some person using their name (yes, that can really happen! Although, there will be some kind of typo or additional letter to make it "different"), then Google will refund the charges and close the account that used your banking information. 

My main "business" is here on Etsy, but I also work with a company part time that provides legal services and identity protection services. I HIGHLY suggest that anyone that does not have identity protection in place get something in place. I would suggest it for anyone no matter what, but especially if you have a business and rely on that income. I've seen way too many people literally lose everything because their identity was stolen. Companies are taking months or longer to report when they have lost customer information. Several banks were hit recently, and they are sending out a vague letter as notification.  It's good you are keeping an eye on your account! Banks should notify you of suspicious activity, but checking your account on a regular basis is so much better for being able to dispute charges in a timely manner. If you start seeing it happening often, though, then someone has more than just bank account information and you might need the help of an identity protection service.

[SanctusBeads]

Thank you everyone. Yes it must be a scammer not related to Etsy. I was just worried it was due to my offsite ads. Going to be more vigilant now!

[AAANativeArts]

There is some sort of scanner thing some crooks have that can scan your credit cards right through your wallet while you are in a store somewhere. I don't know the details of how they do it, but I have seen special metal wallets for sale that are supposed to stop such technology.

Similar to the recent spate of scammers on Etsy sending fake emails from Etsy, there are a zillion different scams designed to trick you out of your credit card information. A lot of those scammers sell those to other scammers that use them to comit fraud both on and offline. If you contest a charge, most credit cards will remove it, especially if the charge was made in another state than you live in.

There are also viruses that can be put into an email that activate if you even open the email and don't click on anything. They can put a keylogger on dodgy websites that don't start with the https: protocol and it can be released on your computer just by viewing the webpage that records any key strokes you type on your keyboard, and once they get in they can steal all the passwords on your computer.

Some scammers pose as tech support somewhere and ask to share your screen so they can "help" you fix a non-existent problem, and then they have access to your whole computer.

Some people sell stolen credit card information on the Dark Web, and it is pretty easy to use someone else's credit card online. My son uses mine all the time (with my permission) but anyone can do it pretty easily. There are sophisticated algorithms hackers can run to guess the information they don't know if they already have part of the information.

My son says if your password is less than 16 characters long, or contains any real words or is missing special characters, those programs can make the right guess in just a few seconds. It's a scary world we live in these days.