Consumer complaint received 2017-09-14
Company: AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY
State: VA
Product: Credit card or prepaid card
Sub-product: General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Other features, terms, or problems
Sub-issue: Privacy issues

Complaint:
POTENTIAL DATA BREACH AMERICAN EXPRESS Consumers, please note this is my 3rd complaint stemming from the original offense committed by American Express -- the opening of an unauthorized credit card in my name. During the time that the legal department was " investigating '' my claims and demands I experienced a data breach to both of my American Express credit cards -- the original gold card that was supposed to be an upgrade and the newly opened platinum card. Consumers, please check your records. My notice to American Express regarding the potential data breach went ignored by their legal department. I also requested a fraud alert be put on my accounts, and this too was ignored. I also alerted the staff attorney to the possibility of fraudulent charges to my gold card and that I could not tell if over {$2000.00} worth of charges were mine or not. All of these requests went completely ignored, which is a violation of the FCRA. Not only did they commit these offenses, they then proceeded to withdraw a large sum of money from my checking account, without notice to me, without my permission, and which INCLUDED the disputed amount that I had previously alerted them to and which they ignored. This not only is yet another credit offense, this is also bank fraud. 

Please take note of the following facts : 1 ) On XXXX XXXX, 2017 I received a call from XXXX XXXX phone number XXXX. Please check your records. This individual that called me identified himself as an American Express customer service represented appointed to call me to go over my platinum card benefits. Being an XXXX, I do not speak to people who call me over the phone and begin to ask me questions about my credit card accounts. I did not answer this man 's questions, but I did ask him many myself, and disturbingly, he had the answers. This fraudulent individual knew the following about me : a ) my credit card account numbers, b ) the balance of said accounts, c ) the points accumulation of each account ( which even I did not know when he called because I had not looked at them in quite some time ), d ) he knew that I had a dispute over my card, e ) he also had details about my conversation with the original Amex customer service rep who opened a new credit card instead of only upgrading. He had details about this conversation as if he had access to the transcripts and/or was able to listen as these conversations took place.
2 ) I immediately alerted the Amex legal department to this. The response? " I did not direct anyone to call you. '' I then proceeded to identify potentially fraudulent charges to my account, asked for the fraud alert and asked to go over the questionable charges with someone and ALL of these requests went completely ignored by a MERCHANT SERVICES LAWYER in the Amex legal department.
3 ) I researched the phone number and came up with the following web address FULL of other customers who experienced the exact same kind of data breach : XXXX XXXX XXXX. I provided the legal department with this information and it too was ignored. 

4 ) I have since checked with the XXXX website to see if perhaps my information had been compromised through that breach and I was informed my account was not affected. That being said, the fact that this fraudster had details regarding a phone conversation with an actual Amex customer service rep virtually removes that kind of breach from one associated with XXXX. Even still, Amex was legally required to review the charges with me, place a fraud alert on my accounts and not deduct sums of money my checking account that could contain previously alerted potentially fraudulent charges. 

I have been an Amex cardholder for TWENTY ONE years. I have paid in full, on time the same day each month for 21 years straight. I have possibly spent at least {$200000.00} or more on my credit cards during that time. I do not recall, in those TWENTY ONE years ever receiving a notice from Amex of a potential data breach, which is required by law.
Please consumers check your records and statements as well as your credit bureau.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation