My card was hacked on holiday in Croatia – and my UK bank replaced it in 5 minutes
Key Points
- A London professional had her card details skimmed while on holiday in Croatia
- Monzo declined a fraudulent charge from "Google G1skoo3m" in real time
- She froze and cancelled the card and ordered a replacement in the app
- Monzo let her add the new card to Google Wallet immediately
- She could spend again within five minutes of the fraud alert
This is a piece written by Jennifer Hacker, a professional living and working in London. HotMinute has edited it for length and clarity.
Someone skimmed my card details during a recent trip to Croatia.
It was a lovely day, with the sun shining and a gelato in my hand. I was wandering around historic landmarks in Dubrovnik when my phone buzzed.
“Do you recognise this transaction?” read the notification from Monzo.
While abroad, all my transactions showed up in different languages, so it took me a minute to double-check. The payment came from a merchant listed only as “Google G1skoo3m”.
It was an online purchase, made while I was standing in the middle of a medieval fort. My only other spending on the trip was a few small purchases at supermarkets and museums.
That strange name told me straight away that something was fishy. Monzo had already declined the transaction in real time.
Fraud abroad brings extra complications
I’ve had these notifications before, and Monzo has protected me from a few fraudulent charges over the last few years. Having your card compromised overseas brings a few additional complications, though.
Cancelling your travel card in the middle of a trip is a real pain. Monzo can send replacement cards within the UK at very short notice, but that doesn’t help much in Dubrovnik’s Old Town.
Like any somewhat seasoned traveller, I had backup cards and other options on hand just in case. Even so, Monzo sorted everything so quickly and simply that I was genuinely impressed.
It was one of those rare moments where financial technology made a potentially stressful problem feel almost trivial.
A new card in five minutes
I froze and cancelled the compromised card, then ordered a replacement. A notification then asked whether I wanted to add my new card straight to Google Wallet.
That meant no waiting for the physical card to arrive, and no waiting at all.
Within five minutes of Monzo detecting the fraud, my new card was set up and ready to use from my phone.
This meant I could continue to use my card for the rest of the holiday through my phone, stress-free. I also knew that the new physical card would be waiting for me when I got back home.
