Amateur Detective Work

I've been having a lot of bad luck with my banking institutions lately. The free checking account which I've had since 1983 is no longer free. It's now being assessed a $8.95 monthly fee! My ATM card was "compromised" and a replacement sent. And on Monday I got a call from my credit card company, asking me if I had charged an airline ticket for $220. The order was placed in Barcelona, Spain. Unless I magically teleported to Spain, then, that would be a "no"!!

So, being the whiner that I am, I posted about the fraudulent charges on my Facebook status. Tissie and another friend replied that they too had had airline tickets charged on their accounts. Then, yesterday, yet another friend told me that she found a fake airline ticket charge on her account.

What do the four of us have in common? We all used our credit cards to guarantee hotel reservations with Travel Planners for ComicCon. Tissie and another friend used their credit cards last year, and the fake charges to their accounts occurred within the last 2 weeks. The charges on my card and my other friend's card happened this week. And guess what? Next week is ComicCon! I'm betting more people will find charges on their cards while they're away.

My friend alerted Heidi MacDonald, and she's posted the info on her blog: The Beat.
So far, 4 other people have had problems with their credit cards.
Update: Travel Planners has responded to Heidi's blog, saying that there was no breach in their security.

Coincidence? Or fraud? The scary thing is, the credit card companies can't trace the fraud because Travel Planners doesn't always place the charges. They send the information directly to the hotels. And, if someone cancels a reservation, Travel Planners still has their credit card information. I'd totally forgotten that I had used my credit card to guarantee my hotel reservation since I made the reservations back in February.

~Allie

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Things that make you go *squee* 3

Are you a dog owner? Then these cute toys are for you!!
These toys are made out of cotton rope and are made in the shape of a bone. More than 100 knots make up this "bone", and your dog will be occupied for hours trying to untie them. They're good for your dog's teeth too. These toys come in other shapes too, including carrots, rabbits, donuts and knots.
Available through the manufacturer, Harry Barker, Inc. and from other pet supply retailers.


For cat lovers, they make mouse rope toys and catnip holders.
Also available through Harry Barker, Inc.
Wow. I really want to go out and find a pet now! :D

Kawaii!!! Tokidoki Frenzies!!
Tokidoki is coming out with a set of zipper pulls/cell phone charms! These adorable charms will be available some time in July. Just in time for ComicCon! There are 22 different "Frenzies", and will come in blind boxes - meaning they're all individually packaged, and you won't know which character you get until you open it. This set includes characters from the Moofia, Cactus Friends, and 'Til Death Do Us Part. You can see more info at Strange Co.

These are in stock now directly through Tokidoki. :D


Comic-Con 2009 Exclusives!
Every year, dozens of limited edition merchandise is sold at San Deigo Comic-Con. Here are two items that caught my eye:
Silver Astronaut Snoopy Figurine
LE 400, Price: TBD
In celebration of Snoopy's 40 years with the US Space Program.
Little Big Planet SackBoy
Price: TBD
Sackboy's wearing a ComicCon Int'l logo shirt!



Mater and friends!
Rescue Squad Mater and Dalmation Tia and Dalmation Tia are dressed and ready to fight some fires! Available at the show and on Mattycollector.com after ComicCon.

USB Owls!
These cute little owls either sit on your laptop screen or sit on a stump next to your computer. Plug 'em into your USB port, and this little critter blinks and moves its head.
Available at Think Geek and Strapya World. There's also a cute video (on both sites) where you can see these little guys in action.

That's it for now. More cute stuff soon!

~Allie

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