In the past two months I've received two potential identity theft notices from both Midwest Supplies and MonsterBrew. Both of the letters talk about the credit card info I used with them in the past possibly being "compromised." Unfortunately, a couple weeks ago, someone made a fraudulent charge with my card number on Walmart.com for about $200. I got it straightened out with my credit card company, was issued a new card, and now I check my accounts every single day to make sure there aren't any fraudulent charges. Inconvenience? Yes. Also worrying that two different homebrew retailers have got their systems broken into in the space of a couple months? Yes. So I just wanted to pass this on and remind you all to be careful about your online purchases.
Here's a funny side story: So Midwest does a solid and gives me a $25 coupon code for the inconvenience of identity theft and "undermining my trust." I'm still pretty upset about my card info being stolen, so I think, wow that's cool. Thank you, Midwest President David Kidd. Monsterbrew didn't do that. I'm getting low on hops, so I go online to buy some. 1 lb of EKG, 1 lb of Styrian Goldings, and 1 lb of Czech Saaz = $91.72. With the "Identity Theft Discount" = $66.72. Grand total with Midwest's "Over a Barrel Shipping" = $79.62 for 3 lbs of hops, but the same hops shipped from Nikobrew is only $43.15. That's a difference of over $36, AFTER the Identity Theft Discount! I'm still trying to figure out how to use the coupon on something I need from Mr. Kidd and actually come out ahead...
Here's a funny side story: So Midwest does a solid and gives me a $25 coupon code for the inconvenience of identity theft and "undermining my trust." I'm still pretty upset about my card info being stolen, so I think, wow that's cool. Thank you, Midwest President David Kidd. Monsterbrew didn't do that. I'm getting low on hops, so I go online to buy some. 1 lb of EKG, 1 lb of Styrian Goldings, and 1 lb of Czech Saaz = $91.72. With the "Identity Theft Discount" = $66.72. Grand total with Midwest's "Over a Barrel Shipping" = $79.62 for 3 lbs of hops, but the same hops shipped from Nikobrew is only $43.15. That's a difference of over $36, AFTER the Identity Theft Discount! I'm still trying to figure out how to use the coupon on something I need from Mr. Kidd and actually come out ahead...