Liz DeAbreu of Killam answered a phone call this week that set off a series of events she’d rather not repeat.

“The caller said she was from Mastercard Security,” DeAbreu says. “She was calling to tell me that a charge from Germany had been made to Amazon for $900 using my card.”

DeAbreu initially scoffed at the statement. “I know I’ve been home for weeks, I haven’t even used my card during that period. I was thinking ‘how could someone have my number?’”

She says she kept denying it to the caller, who was insistent that her card was in danger.

“She gave me her code name and her phone number then,” says DeAbreu, adding, “this woman had a beautiful voice, and she was so friendly, and so concerned about me, I was very nearly convinced.”

Then came the clincher; the caller told DeAbreu: “I have the first four numbers of your Mastercard, now I need you to give me the next numbers so I can make sure it’s you.”

The caller went so far as to tell her that they needed her voice on record to confirm the number.

That’s where DeAbreu really took a step back.

“She was so, so convincing, and I was already upset to think that someone else had my card, but something about what she said made me reluctant to take that next step.”

Instead, DeAbreu told the caller she wanted to call her back. “I asked if I could have her call back number; she agreed readily, and gave me her code name again, her real name, and a phone number.”

DeAbreu hung up and immediately called her bank.