My neighbor went through something similar, and it turned out to be a data breach from a local doctor's office. Sometimes it's not even your fault... just gotta stay alert and monitor your accounts regularly. Hope your friend got things sorted without too much hassle.
Had something similar happen last year after I took my car in for servicing. Got a call from the bank about suspicious charges at some electronics store I'd never even visited. Turns out an employee had skimmed card info... you really can never be too careful these days.
Had the same issue a couple years back, but mine happened at a gas station. Honestly, I doubt anywhere is totally safe these days... I switched to using virtual cards online and paying cash at sketchy-looking spots. Seems paranoid, maybe, but it's worked so far.
Yeah, virtual cards are a solid move. I've had my share of sketchy experiences too—once at this random diner off the interstate. Got home and noticed a bunch of weird charges popping up. Bank sorted it out eventually, but it was a huge hassle. Now I just keep a separate low-limit card for places I don't fully trust. Maybe it's overly cautious, but better safe than sorry these days...
"Now I just keep a separate low-limit card for places I don't fully trust."
Smart move, honestly. Reminds me of this one time when I was traveling to a car event—stopped at some hole-in-the-wall gas station to fill up the tank. Next day, my bank alerts started pinging non-stop. Turns out someone skimmed my card info right at the pump. Since then, I've been using virtual cards and Apple Pay wherever possible. Definitely worth the slight inconvenience to avoid all that headache...
