Your credit card information is constantly at risk. The moment a method is developed to deter opportunistic criminals, another way of gathering your information and taking your money is invented. Credit card fraud can do severe damage to your finances – preventing it or limiting the potential damage should be a top priority. Luckily, it’s not difficult to achieve. These tips will help you stay vigilant and stop you from becoming another credit card fraud statistic.
Protect your cards
The first and most crucial step is to keep your credit card protected. Criminals can get your credit information several ways, but these often require extra steps – a criminal with credit card in hand can start stealing immediately. For convenience, many consumers use ‘tap and go’ without requiring a pin number, but this leaves your finances open to huge risks if that card is taken.
Always keep your credit cards close to your body and within sight. By keeping an eye out, you can avoid the cards being taken inconspicuously by thieves or pickpockets. Before you leave a store or public place, make sure you still have your card with you. For added safety, you can keep your credit card in a cardholder separate from your purse or wallet as these are primary targets for criminals. And finally, don’t leave your credit card open and exposed for too long. A single picture taken at the right moment could give someone access to your credit.
Check your statements
Upon receiving your bank statements, do you check each transaction? Do you skim through it and close it again? Or do you not open it at all? For many consumers, the answer is the latter. However, checking your bank statements is a vital tool in credit card fraud detection.
Every month, set aside a few minutes to check each transaction and search for inconsistencies. If you are unsure about a charge, or you see something suspicious, call your bank immediately to investigate. The sooner you call to enquire about a transaction, the sooner it can be dealt with. If they find a problem, the bank may be able to reverse the charge on suspicion of fraud and assist to prevent more charges to your account.
Report a lost card immediately
You may have misplaced your card before and not worried, thinking it will turn up somewhere if you look a bit harder. Unfortunately, if the card has been stolen, or found by someone else, the time spent waiting for it to turn up could equal more money out of your account. Criminals act quickly – you should too. Report a lost or misplaced card to the bank immediately to prevent any unauthorized charges. Although it often seems like a hassle, it’s better to go through the effort of ordering a new credit card than to find it has been taken by someone else.
Check ATM machines before use
Skimming – when criminals gather your credit card information from pay points or ATM machines – is one of the oldest tricks of credit card fraudsters. Skimming methods are constantly evolving, becoming harder to detect each day, but there are a few basic tricks you can use to stay on top of it. Before using an ATM, wriggle the card machine gently to see if it is loose. Skimmers place false covers on ATMs that skim your information when you insert your card – a loose card machine is a telltale sign. Always keep an eye on your credit card when it is in use. A skimmer may use a payment opportunity to run your card through a skimming machine out of sight before processing your payment without your knowledge.
Beware of ‘phishing’
Phishing is another method scammers use to obtain your credit information and steal money. These scammers can be very convincing, posing as credit institutions or bank employees and encouraging you to give up your personal information. Any correspondence related to credit should be approached with caution. If your bank calls to enquire about credit and asks for any personal information that could be damaging, hang up and call the bank back. Scammers will be caught out, and you can notify the bank of suspicious activity if the call was not from them. The same principal applies to texts – do not respond with your personal information and contact official channels instead.
Email is another avenue phishers use. Do not click on any links in emails (even if it looks official) as the sent address can be manipulated to appear authentic. If you are concerned, contact your service provider and they will be able to assist you with accurate, safe information.
Don’t conduct online transactions in public places
Many people have their credit card information stored on their computer or linked to online accounts. This is convenient for online shopping, but also convenient for criminals. Filling in your credit card information at home is usually safe (depending on the website as we will discuss next), but it can be extremely risky in a public place. Strangers can watch your screen without your knowledge, and if you are connected to public Wi-Fi, hackers in the area can use that to gain access to your computer and steal the information from your online transaction. Using a VPN over public Wi-Fi can protect your data, but it is best to stay safe and avoid using sensitive information in public altogether.
Check the websites you shop at
The internet is an expansive, often confusing place, filled with scammers trying to steal your information. One of the ways they do this is through false websites. Criminals may replicate the web pages of official sites (especially banks) to trick you into filling in your passwords. Others may create fake product websites to get you to pay for fake items, stealing your credit card information in the process as you make your payment. Always check the website URL – if a site begins with https:// is it usually safe (the s stands for secure). Not all http websites are scams, but avoid inputting personal information and credit card information on unsecured sites. Also, check the URL for any irregularities. Scammers may change the address slightly (like changing amazon.com to amaz0n.com) to convince consumers to hand over their credit card information. Check any website you haven’t heard of and intend to purchase from for grammar or spelling mistakes, or search the site name – if it is a scam and others have been caught out, it will often come up in an online search.
Strengthen your passwords
This point is drilled into our heads constantly, but it bears repeating – strengthen your passwords. Gone are the days of using your name and a few numbers, or some iteration of ‘password’. Hackers are too smart for that. We roll our eyes when websites request more difficult passwords – an obscure character and combination you will never remember – but these steps go a long way to protecting your information as password hacking methods advance. Make sure your password is complex, containing a combination of upper- and lower-case letters, numbers, and special characters. Change your password frequently (every two months is the recommended time) and never give it to anyone or store it somewhere it can be easily discovered.
Destroy any documentation with your card number or personal information
It may sound like paranoia, but scammers will go to extreme lengths to gather your information – including going through your trash. A credit card number is all they need to gain access to your funds and start stealing, so keep that information safe from dumpster divers. Shred or rip any documents with your personal information and ensure they are completely illegible before discarding.
Many of these tips may seem extreme to those not typically aware or concerned about credit card fraud, but criminals are getting smarter every day – you should too. All it requires is some extra vigilance, and a few minutes of your time, to stop yourself from becoming a victim.