Every day in the United Kingdom cases involving credit card fraud cost the economy over £1 million, despite the increased complexity and sophistication of anti-fraud security measures. Accordingly, it is essential if you possess a credit card to be aware of the risks involved as well as ensure you know how to protect yourself against the activities of fraudsters.
How Does Credit Card Fraud Happen?
Credit card fraud is a major earner for organized crime gangs across the country and as a result, these criminals devote much time to developing ever more complicated and advanced techniques. Indeed some online casino games for real money of the methods used by credit card fraudsters are so sophisticated that it may well be virtually impossible to protect yourself 100% against them. That said, there are also a great number of much simpler fraudulent practices out there which can be avoided with the right precautions.
Credit card fraud tends to occur in the following ways:
Acquiring the card itself and using it. This tends to involve either stealing the card from someone’s wallet or bag or removing it from the mail before it even reaches its intended recipe removing the card temporarily during a transaction such as when paying your bill at a restaurant – and then cloning or duplicating it out of view of the cardholder Stealing the relevant card details, as opposed to the card itself, for instance when it is being used to purchase goods or services via the internet Identity theft, then opening a new card account in the name of the victim Acquiring the relevant information while the card is being used at a cash machine or ATM. This usually involves fitting software or other equipment into the ATM to capture the relevant data, as well as using other means like video recorders to capture PIN numbers.
Protecting Yourself
If you are the innocent victim of credit card fraud you are entitled to be reimbursed by your card provider for any fraudulent transactions. However, this only applies if the fraud did not occur because of some fault on your part so in order to ensure that you are not denied reimbursement it is important to observe a few commonsense precautions
Ensure you keep your PIN number secure It goes without saying that you should not write your PIN down or pass it on to someone else Take simple precautions when typing your PIN into an ATM or other machine to ensure that you are not being observed
If necessary conceal the numbers while typing in your PIN If you are using your card online make sure that you are paying for goods or services via a secure portal and take precautions to protect your PC or another device against viruses or other malware.
Never dispose of financial documents without shredding them first, thereby avoiding the risk of identity theft does not divulge any personal information either via post, by telephone, or by email. Remember your bank or Credit Card Company will never ask you to disclose your password or PIN number in an email. If you lose your card or it goes missing make sure you let your card company know about it without delay Check your credit card balance online.
Not only does this help you keep on top of your expenses it will also enable you to flag any suspicious or irregular activities quickly Monitor your credit card statement regularly online so you can stop fraudulent activity quickly Credit card companies are obliged to offer their cardholders protection against fraudulent activities and reimburse them for any expenses incurred as a result of fraud where the cardholder cannot be held accountable for the fraud. It is the responsibility of the credit card company to demonstrate fault, so it is not surprising that they have a significant interest in devising technology to defeat fraud these days, all cards have PIN technology so that account activity can be monitored. Some companies offer cards with extra security features, including fraud monitoring, fraud guarantee schemes, and 3D secure technology
In addition to taking the above precautions to ensure your credit card transactions are worry-free and not at the mercy of fraudsters, it is also a good idea to check your top online casinos report from time to time. You can do this easily by paying a nominal fee to one of the major credit reference agencies and this will let you check to see if anyone is attempting to open accounts in your name for fraudulent purposes
