I don't know about Visa, but Mastercard called me on more than several occasions. Yes, a real phone call, whether it was me that just purchased this and that item and if they should let the payment go. This happened when I was travelling around Europe. Many times the seller was also blown up by the promptness of the call, sometimes like 20 seconds after the swipe.
After some time, the MC system seems to have learned my patters and also coordinated with other data. For example, I bought a ticket to US with the same card. No single call on any purchase over there. They knew I was in US and most probably the shopping was legit.
After some time, the MC system seems to have learned my patters and also coordinated with other data. For example, I bought a ticket to US with the same card. No single call on any purchase over there. They knew I was in US and most probably the shopping was legit.