EDITORIAL:News of fraud is a warning

A story reported in last week’s Daily Pilot is a chilling reminder that we all are at risk of becoming crime victims in the most subtle and unseen of ways.

Costa Mesa police have determined that nearly 450 people had their debit card numbers stolen and used to withdraw large sums of money in Las Vegas during the days before Halloween.

Police have not determined yet where the theft of the numbers may have occurred, but the incidents match those of another 150 people who had their numbers stolen, Westminster police say, from an Arco station in that city.

“I felt so invaded; it nauseated me for two days,” one of the victims told the Pilot. “I barely use my card.” Unfortunately for her and others, the thieves did not so hesitate, pulling more than $50,000 from victims’ accounts.

Newport Beach police are looking into two similar debit card thefts.

Bank officials say that people should keep watch on their spending and quickly report any unauthorized purchases. If people do so, they largely are safe because most banks will refund any unauthorized withdrawals.

Still, being safe and feeling safe are entirely different. And nowadays, there are ever so many sinister ways for us not to be safe, including debit and credit card theft and the more encompassing identity theft.

As the story this past week shows, those ways can come unexpectedly and hit hard.