Consumer complaint received 2021-06-25
Product: Credit card or prepaid card — General-purpose credit card or charge card
Issue: Other features, terms, or problems — Privacy issues
Company: CAPITAL ONE FINANCIAL CORPORATION (CO)

On XX/XX/XXXX, my husband added our daughter to our credit card account ( CapitalOne ). On XX/XX/XXXX, we tried booking a vacation that was a high dollar amount, which triggered a higher level fraud detection, In " normal '' fraud detection concerns, the company would simply send us a text saying " was this you '' and we could reply yes or no. 

In this case, CapitalOne, put our accounts on restricted status until we upload the front and back copies of our social security card, a drivers license, and proof of residency. 

We have major concerns about uploading personal identifiable information. We have let CapitalOne know this, but they insist that our accounts remain on restricted status until we do so. 

I sent an email to CapitalOne executives on Wednesday, XX/XX/XXXX, and have received no response : Dear CapitalOne, Our account was recently placed on restricted status. Your fraud department is asking us to upload our social security number, driver 's license and proof of residency. We are not comfortable uploading personally identifiable information - even with a secure site. Personal and secure information gets stolen all the time - despite the best intentions of companies trying to secure their data, including XXXX : XXXX : XXXX With that being said, my husband did upload the information, although he obfuscated some of it for our own personal security reasons. We called to verify the information had been received but have also been told that the team who investigates will likely not accept this as proof of identity since it had been obfuscated. 

While I understand, and appreciate, the importance of verifying potentially fraudulent charges, to require this information be uploaded into cyberspace is very much an over-reach. There are several other ways to verify your customers personal and sensitive information ( in person verification perhaps, other security questions etc. ). 

As Im sure you understand, having accounts on restricted status place us in a compromised position with other businesses that are tied to our personal bills. They are now not getting paid. When we call to check the status, the agents simply say 5-7 business days, which is far too long to be locked out of your accounts. 

We also read some articles online about other customers who have experienced the same fate. We even read one customers story that said even if they wanted to close the account, they would still have to upload this same personally identifiable information in order to do so, which is seemingly absurd. 

We have had your card in our wallets for over 20 years. The customer service, or lack thereof, is unprecedented. We are who we say we are. Your systems generated a heightened fraud alert, but there was no fraud. This should be resolved in no less than 24 hours, and you should absolutely respect that customers are not comfortable uploading personal identifiable information securely or not into cyberspace. 

Were not criminals. Weve been loyal customers, and are simply appalled by how we are being treated.