CORONA DEL MAR TODAY

Bieber Fever Symptoms Include Nausea, Headache

I’m 45 years old, and I have Bieber Fever.

So when I received an email from American Express, inviting me to a presale of October concert tickets to see Justin at Staples, I was very excited. I would take my daughter, who is more age-appropriate at 9 years old. We’d have so much fun!

However, American Express seems to think that a 45-year-old cardholder wanting to buy tickets to such a spectacle is unlikely. My first order was canceled because my card didn’t work. My second order, with worse seats — same thing.

By this time, I received a Fraud Alert email, saying that American Express believed that someone else may possibly be posing as me and buying the tickets. By the time I cleared that up, I couldn’t get the tickets any longer.

So frustrating! Why would they send me an email, telling me they thought I’d be interested in a concert, but then find it suspicious when I actually agreed?

I spent nearly 90 minutes on this today. When I had so many other things to be doing.

I appreciate fraud safeguards. But this was an exercise that felt kind of like banging my head against a wall.