Credit Cards

What Should You Report?

Credit reporting agencies gather and disclose personal and credit information to a wide business client base. Credit reports also indicate the lenders, landlords, and employers the thief may have visited, using your name. Credit cards are commonly involved in identity theft. Credit cards, credit card receipts, and credit card bills are commonly used as a source for gaining the information necessary to steal someones identity. Credit reports contain much personal information, including employment, addresses, a social security number and birth day.

Credit reports from the three major credit bureaus are available for free, once a year, at annualcreditreport. Credit card companies always recommend us with protections and it is like anti-virus software and waste of money as a result of fact. Credit can also be negatively affected by the actions of identity thieves, and can take a long time to repair.

A classic example of credit-dependent financial crime (bank fraud) occurs when a criminal obtains a loan from a financial institution by impersonating someone else. An account established by a perpetrator can be abused by passing bad checks, and “busting out” a checking or credit account with bad checks, counterfeit money orders, or empty ATM envelope deposits. The victim may discover the incident by being denied a loan, by seeing the accounts or complaints when they view their own credit history, or by being contacted by creditors or collection agencies.

Identity Theft is a Serious Problem

A classic example of credit-dependent financial crime (bank fraud) occurs when a criminal obtains a loan from a financial institution by impersonating someone else. An account established by a perpetrator can be abused by passing bad checks, and “busting out” a checking or credit account with bad checks, counterfeit money orders, or empty ATM envelope deposits. The victim may discover the incident by being denied a loan, by seeing the accounts or complaints when they view their own credit history, or by being contacted by creditors or collection agencies.

What Should You Report?

Identity theft is a crime used to refer to fraud that involves someone pretending to be someone else in order to steal money or get other benefits. Identity theft may be used to facilitate crimes including illegal immigration, terrorism, and espionage. Identity theft may also be a means of blackmail. Identity theft literally steals who you are, and it can seriously jeopardize your financial future. Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States, costing victims over $5 billion annually.

Protection

In recent years, many commercial identity theft protection services have been started by companies in the United States. I had heard about how LifeLock guarantees identity protection. LifeLock, the industry leader in proactive identity theft protection, offers a proactive solution to help prevent your identity from being stolen before it happens. “LifeLock is the best identity theft protection program we have found. We know you will always want to have the best protection money can buy.

Conclusion

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in America, victimizing over 10 million people a year and costing billions of dollars. Identity theft can have devastating consequences for you, as the victim, who may face long hours of closing bad accounts, opening new ones, and repairing your wrecked credit record.

Having recently received the credit card bill for a card that has not been activated since I received it several months ago, I was surprised to find charges on the bill. Somehow I managed to use this unactivated card to sign up for a monthly MLM deal, purchase travel from hotwire and a train ticket as well. As I said, this card has been in my wallet with the little sticker to call this number from my home phone to activate it, for over seven months! But the charges didn’t start until November. How could this have been prevented?

Throw away credit card numbers can be of some use here but probably wouldn’t have prevented the above from happening as somehow someone got my name and actual credit card number. But for online shopping protection using virtual credit cards may be helpful - or they may lead us to a false sense of security. Just because I use a virtual card only once doesn’t mean someone can’t get the real information to use for their benefit.

Similar to using a disposable camera while traveling to protect your expensive one from loss or damage, a virtual card can prevent loss when used for online purchases. In this case, it is the number that can be used once and then discarded.

Since credit card fraud is so widespread we aren’t surprised when it happens and the card companies are looking for ways to cut their losses. This must be done without inconveniencing the ability of their customers t make purchases either in person or online while protecting vital information. They are hoping that virtual card numbers will be the solution.

Virtual card numbers are used for online purchases the same way regular credit cards are but the number is only temporary. The number is generated on demand and issued as a replacement for the actual card number to be used for a short time period. Personal information is not sent to the vendor and these numbers may be single use or they may be used for multiple purchases for a limited time before the number becomes invalid.

Protecting the real number from felonious use is the objective with virtual numbers. Should a computer hacker gain access to credit card data from a secure processing center, your account number would be protected. When they attempted to use your virtual number they would be denied credit.

Everyone expects their card information to be safe and secure when making a purchase online. But there is the possibility, however remote, that an employee of the online merchant would sell card information to criminals. Of course this would make them a criminal as well but some people will do anything if the price is right and there is little possibility of them being caught.

Virtual credit card numbers biggest benefit is from protecting your valuable information online. If such a number is stolen, it is or becomes worthless in a short time. If you make several purchases with your credit card per month you may see a real benefit from using virtual card numbers to assure all your transactions are secure and your information protected.

Many people enjoy the convenience of paying for goods and services with a credit card. Unfortunately, some people become victims of the growing problem of credit card fraud. The first you may know of fraudulent activity on your credit card account is seeing unauthorized transactions on your statement.

Here are 12 simple steps to minimize the possibility of fraud on your credit card account:

1. Keep both your personal and credit card information secure. Never email your credit card details. Email is not a secure method of transmitting data and can be intercepted by criminals.

2. When you receive a new credit card always sign it immediately.

3. When you receive a replacement credit card always destroy the old card immediately. Cut the old card into at least three pieces.

4. Make sure you thoroughly destroy old receipts that have your card details printed on them. The most effective method is to use a shredder.

5. Open and read your credit card statement as soon as you receive it. Check to make sure you know what all the payments printed on the statement were for.

6. If you see transactions on your credit card statement that you do not recognize, immediately contact your bank or credit card company.

7. If you cannot find your credit card for any reason, immediately telephone the card issuing company and tell them. They will block the card to prevent any unauthorized use.

8. Never tell anyone your Personal Identification Number, which allows cash withdrawals using your credit card.

9. Make sure your Personal Identification Number is not easy to guess. Avoid using numbers that are easy to trace, for example do not use your date of birth. Ensure you use a different Personal Identification Number for each individual credit card.

10. Do not use an ATM if you suspect it has been tampered with. Report your suspicion to the bank that operates the ATM.

11. When you use your credit card in a retail store always keep a watch on your card while the clerk processes the payment. Double check it is your card that is handed back to you.

12. If you use your credit card to make online purchases, always ensure the web page where you enter your credit card details is secure. A secure web page has a URL that begins https:// and an image of a locked padlock in the bottom right hand corner of the browser window.

Following these simple precautions will reduce the possibility of you becoming a victim of credit card fraud. Your bank or credit card company may have further information on minimizing the risk of credit card fraud, so it is worth contacting them.