
Ask HN: Google receiving updated credit card numbers – is that legal? - stilesb
https://imgur.com/a/W0BT8Qm
======
fr0sty
Point of order: Your bank told Google (and likely anyone else who is auto-
billing your card) that your CC# or Expiration Date changed. Google did not
solicit this information from the bank on your behalf.

Further Point of order: This is likely Visa (cc issuer) taking this action (in
accordance with the terms of your agreement with them, no doubt) and not your
bank.

~~~
forgottenpass
Those are not points of order. They're a response to OP's question. You can
just respond to them like a regular person.

~~~
scarejunba
There is a certain amusing concordance with correcting use of the phrase
“point of order” and its meaning.

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Mysterix
This seems to be an old VISA feature :
[https://www.reddit.com/r/privacy/comments/5xbwgk/my_bank_has...](https://www.reddit.com/r/privacy/comments/5xbwgk/my_bank_has_given_google_my_new_bank_account/)

~~~
drb91
Ahh yes, the old “it’s not a bug, it’s a feature!”

~~~
trothamel
It actually is a feature, though.

Having to go and update your recurring billing because your card changed (the
expiration date passed, or your credentials leaked and a new number has to be
issued) would be a huge pain in the ass.

I'd hope there are some controls here - in the case of a compromise, that only
accounts that existed before the compromise occurred will be updated. But it
strikes me that something that does the right thing 99% of the time should be
welcomed.

~~~
dogma1138
It only updates the expiration date upon automatic renewal by the issuer and
after an update a CVV2 reconfirmation is required (unless it’s a recurring
transaction, saved account details and recurring transactions are different
beasts) since the CVV2 has also been rotated.

Change of PAN due to a new card being issued whether it’s on the request of
the costumer, lost or compromised card should not auto-update.

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dguo
Stripe automatically updates card details as well:
[https://stripe.com/blog/smarter-saved-cards](https://stripe.com/blog/smarter-
saved-cards)

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jasonjayr
My bank, in the terms of service included a small notice that they'd update
account information through a Visa/MC network feature, and gave me an
opportunity to opt out of the feature if I wanted to.

As with any ToS, it's buried under a sea of text, and it took a few readings
of the notice to understand what it was actually claiming to do.

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denimnerd
yes

[https://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/recurring-
charg...](https://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/recurring-charges-
updater-1275.php)

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PunchTornado
that's standard practice. everyone does it. amazon knows about my new card
sooner than me.

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DocFeind
If the bank issues the notice, it is inside the law. If google fished it out,
it may not be.

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crankylinuxuser
Ignoring the question - its a legal matter.

But this should be definitely a reminder that all data in your google
associated accounts are automatically read and scanned. If you talk to
"Johnny", you're also talking to "Google" as well.

What can you do? This is a good start [https://restoreprivacy.com/google-
alternatives/](https://restoreprivacy.com/google-alternatives/)

EDIT: Seriously, -4 in 9 minutes over completely valid concerns? Google is no
golden child - remember, they _are_ doubleclick and more.

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Simon_says
I will frequently close credit cards when I terminate a subscription service,
like a gym membership, just to ensure vendors don't 'accidentally' continue to
charge me. I guess Google has determined that my behavior is a bug and figured
out a way to route around it.

~~~
crazygringo
1) Do you really? You know that frequently opening and closing credit cards
negatively impacts your credit score? Which means you could wind up paying far
more money in the end for a mortgage, say?

2) If a vendor is "accidentally" charging you and you're actually in the
right, chargebacks fix that instantly.

3) If you have an actual (multi-)year contract with a gym, cancelling your
card doesn't get you out of that contract. Charges can often still be made to
a closed card, you'll get bills from either the gym or your credit card
provider, and it will go to a collections agency if you don't pay (and again,
knock down your credit score).

I really hope you don't actually do this because you'd be harming yourself for
zero actual benefit.

~~~
Simon_says
Ha, sorry, I misspoke. I mean I report the card lost, which closes that
account number, but the account at the bank remains and my credit report
remains unchanged.

You can only request a chargeback, and chargebacks only work sometimes. I've
done maybe 10 in my life, and I think 1 out of those 10 didn't go through --
the bank sided with the merchant. And I think if you do too many, the banks
get pissed off. So depending on chargebacks is not a panacea.

And I'm not talking about reneging on my responsibilities or contracts that
I've entered into. I always resolve those.

