A fairly straightforward and simple way for a thief who has knowledge of credit card fraud to "make a living" is by stealing credit card numbers, at least for a short period. Now, you may be thinking you are very safe but lets look at some facts.
I personally have used my credit card many, many more times on the internet than in shops in the high street or in restaurants. On the internet I have had no problems ever. I have been defrauded when using my card at a gas station, however. So this goes to show that its certainly not the case that all fraud is on the internet. I trust the internet more, actually. Its not difficult for someone who works in a restaurant as a casual waiter or waitress to attain your card details by what is known as "skimming".
What is skimming? This is where when you hand over you card to a store keeper or whomever and they take it to make payment for your goods or the services you have been given. However, instead of only swiping your card for the one transaction you made, they will swipe the card into a card reader which can then be taken off premises and the data downloaded to a computer or other storage device.
The only way to ensure that this is not taking place on your account is to make regular checks on your credit card statement. Its often the case that thieves will make very small transactions on your account so do go through your statement thoroughly and anything that just does not seem to add up you should query.
Banks and other financial institutions have powers to compensate you in full should you be the unfortunate victim of credit card fraud but should be any reason for complacency. They will not always compensate you which is what happened to me, although thats a long and rather complicated story.
Here are a few pointers to help in reducing your credit card fraud potential:
- any thing other than your credit card statements or any other valuable document pertaining to your credit card you should shred or burn. Do not just simply throw it in the bin and presume it will be safely disposed of
- if you are ever asked to provide credit card account details over the phone you have to ask why. Its possible this could be fraudulent activity to be very sure before you divulge anything at all
- do not lend your credit card out to anyone unless you trust them implicitly
- its wise to carry only the card or cards that you really need and any other cards you have, leave them in a safe place at home or in the office
- if you use your card at a store, restaurant, shop or similar, do not leave the credit slip lying around or do not just simply put in the bucket
- do check your statements on a regular basis to make sure there is no strange expenses on there
- if you are moving home then do let your credit card company know well in advance of your move
So there we are, some simple but very effective ways to lower any risks to our credit cards and ensure we do not suffer from credit card theft.
I personally have used my credit card many, many more times on the internet than in shops in the high street or in restaurants. On the internet I have had no problems ever. I have been defrauded when using my card at a gas station, however. So this goes to show that its certainly not the case that all fraud is on the internet. I trust the internet more, actually. Its not difficult for someone who works in a restaurant as a casual waiter or waitress to attain your card details by what is known as "skimming".
What is skimming? This is where when you hand over you card to a store keeper or whomever and they take it to make payment for your goods or the services you have been given. However, instead of only swiping your card for the one transaction you made, they will swipe the card into a card reader which can then be taken off premises and the data downloaded to a computer or other storage device.
The only way to ensure that this is not taking place on your account is to make regular checks on your credit card statement. Its often the case that thieves will make very small transactions on your account so do go through your statement thoroughly and anything that just does not seem to add up you should query.
Banks and other financial institutions have powers to compensate you in full should you be the unfortunate victim of credit card fraud but should be any reason for complacency. They will not always compensate you which is what happened to me, although thats a long and rather complicated story.
Here are a few pointers to help in reducing your credit card fraud potential:
- any thing other than your credit card statements or any other valuable document pertaining to your credit card you should shred or burn. Do not just simply throw it in the bin and presume it will be safely disposed of
- if you are ever asked to provide credit card account details over the phone you have to ask why. Its possible this could be fraudulent activity to be very sure before you divulge anything at all
- do not lend your credit card out to anyone unless you trust them implicitly
- its wise to carry only the card or cards that you really need and any other cards you have, leave them in a safe place at home or in the office
- if you use your card at a store, restaurant, shop or similar, do not leave the credit slip lying around or do not just simply put in the bucket
- do check your statements on a regular basis to make sure there is no strange expenses on there
- if you are moving home then do let your credit card company know well in advance of your move
So there we are, some simple but very effective ways to lower any risks to our credit cards and ensure we do not suffer from credit card theft.
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