This morning, I was sitting at work when a call came in from the fraud prevention center for the bank with whom I have a business credit card. Apparently, they had noticed a sudden, sharp increase of activity on my card and were calling to investigate.

I could recall two recent purchases with my business credit card: a tank of gas during a business trip, and a subscription to The Hedghog Review. But as the woman on the line began reading off some of the recent charges to my card, it became evident that someone had been using my card to do their Christmas shopping. (When she named a Wal-Mart purchase of $175, the nail was in the coffin. My longtime Ferry Dust readers may remember that I do not shop at Wal-Mart.)