That's one of the lovely things about caller ID. While that would not be a guarantee the person I am talking to on the phone is legit, I never answer a call from an unidentifed number that gets through the block filter (numbers with caller ID block get routed to a message center). If the number does identfy itself as VISA or Mastercard, or the banks that are tied to them, there would be at least an internal investigation for starters, and my phone saves the numbers.

Of course, knowing this now, I'm the type of person that would wait until they finish their spiel, give them a wrong number, call the bank, and wait for the ping. *snicker*

Still, it is kind of scary, and they would have probably convinced me were it not for K (who has dealt with merchant services for many years), advised me that only Internet sites ask for that number and never to give it out.

Thank you and kitanzi and filkertom for the heads-up!