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Hostinger auto-charged my expired card again

General Discussion by adam20 17 replies 2.1K views
adam20

Member OP

Ex-Abuse Desk

#1

So last year I posted about Hostinger hitting my expired card through some "account updater" service my bank runs. Privacy nightmare, right? Card was supposedly dead, they got the new number anyway.

Here's the twist. The ticket said... "we do not store your full PAN, updates are handled by your card network." Standard deflection. But three days after that auto-charge, my bank called. The "updated" number they'd been feeding merchants? Already flagged in a separate breach. The $47 Hostinger charge was the first transaction on the compromised replacement. Their auto-renewal actually triggered fraud detection faster than if I'd manually paid.

Still hate that they got the number without asking. But I guess "the ticket said... 'our system protects you from fraud you would not have otherwise detected.'" Absurd. Not sure if I should thank them or file another complaint.

reported. resolved. repeat.
ian3

Member

refugee from big host

#2

"cheap" "privacy" "protection"

Allegedly the card networks pitch account updater as a "convenience" for "consumers" who "forget" to update billing. Source: trust me but also the visa merchant docs I allegedly read once

The real product is merchant retention. Your expired card is "friction." they "solve" it by making your bank pipe fresh numbers to anyone who ever had the old one. "secure"

zhaojuho

Member

iptables enjoyer

#3

The real kicker is you cant even opt out in most cases I called my bank once and the rep said "oh we dont control that its the network" and the network said "talk to your issuer" and round and round it goes until you give up and install arch btw just to feel like you have control over something in your life

The fraud flagging is a nice accident though like a broken clock or a router that only works when you dont touch it

mediaaustin

Member

Deliverability Nerd

#4

The system broken by design it is— the merchant happy the bank happy the user last thought is— yet this once the accident good did— the fire alarm by arson triggered is it

Ji adam20 your luck strange is— to be grateful for what should not happen one hates is it

SPF, DKIM, DMARC — holy trinity ✉️
quinnbizz

Member

#5

IMO the account updater services are genuinely hard to opt out of, YMMV by issuer. Some credit unions let you disable it, most big banks bury the toggle.

Take it with a grain of salt, but if you're staying with Hostinger, maybe switch to ACH or PayPal to break the card network chain entirely. Not perfect, fewer automatic surprises.

...
lucgone

Member

Le Baguette

#6

ACH or PayPal to break the chain is the only real move

Vive la résistance... électrique
IC

Member

#7

"account updater" as consumer convenience is some impressive doublespeak

ian3

Member

refugee from big host

#8
quinnbizz said:
Switch to ACH or PayPal to break the card network chain entirely

PayPal's no saint here either. They'll pull from your bank direct debit in the UK, sure, but their own merchant-side "billing agreement" auto-renewals are just as grabby. I killed one last year that had been dormant since 2019. Ghost subscription, still authorised.

The only clean break is prepaid virtual cards you load manually. Revolut, Monzo, whatever. Burner number per merchant. Merchant tries to update, gets told to sod off.

adam20

Member OP

Ex-Abuse Desk

#9
ian3 said:
Prepaid virtual cards you load manually

Tried that after the first thread. Hostinger rejected the Monzo virtual card three times before the payment went through on the fourth attempt. No idea why. Their billing system is twitchy with BINs it doesn't recognise.

Still worth it though. The virtual card expired last month and this time the auto-renewal actually failed like it should. Email saying "update your payment method." Revolutionary concept.

reported. resolved. repeat.
quinnbizz

Member

#10

The prepaid approach works until you forget to load it and your site goes down. Ask me how I know.

Trade-offs everywhere.

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