I also received one of these from Target Redcard a few days ago because I changed to a new carrier. My Zelle account from one of my banks was also closed for the same reason. Keep in mind, I only changed carriers but my phone number was still the same.
Last update: 5/10/2024
That's bizarre! At least to me. How could the carrier... oh, wait, were you auto-paying your phone bill with the credit card in question? (I know nothing about this card, i.e., if it's a store or major credit card.) If not, how did they even know about this credit card?
Reality is there isnt anything they dont know if you are conducting your business online.
That's nice that they do that so you don't forget. What most likely happened is they tried to send a message and it bounced or the name linked to that phone number changed.
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I for one see this as a security feature. Most of the examples here relate to direct bank account access. Target Debit card. Zelle. The Chase example could be debit also.
On some of the "tell us your verification cell phone number" screens there is a paired field to specify your cell carrier. That may be also derived behind the scenes in some other cases that we don't see.
Target, as the target of a notorious data breach not that long ago, seems to have other significant controls over data one does not see everywhere.
Our cell phones have become a critical identification tool for many two-factor authentication methods. Someone spoofing your phone, after lifting your debit card info, would be a terrible combination. Knowing the carrier along with the cell number, if my theory is correct, would benefit that part of data security.
