Credit Card Fraud

[mudzs]

Well as the title states i was robbed on sunday night ,A total of £1600 was drawn on my card in a two hour period ,luckily my wife spotted it early monday and was able to cancel the card .Have not got a clue how the robbing :tsktsk: got the detail as always use secure sites etc .So everyone be warned if you use your card for internet buying check you statements carefully as you never know who is next.

[DaveEllen]

commiserations Tony.

My sister refuse to use windoze based stuff for internet purchases as its easy to hack into...........thought she was daft but maybe not

[ColinBarber]

Sorry to hear your news Tony.

Card numbers can be copied anywhere. Internet is no less secure than a petrol station for example. You can even get card number generators - maybe you were unlucky and your number came up.

I know quite a few people who have had 'extras' on their statements, some don't even use the Internet.

[mudzs]

Good point colin did not give that a thought just blamed the internet ,worst thing is the bank could have stopped the payments going out as it takes 3 days for them to go through, but they are not allowed to do so by law .Good job they are insured so i will get monies reimbursed after a week .

[Steve]

hmm got me thinking.. i sometimes use a debit card online.. that is real bad right?? I cannot claim back off a debit card?

[ColinBarber]

You should only be able to ship items to your home address with a debit card.

[mudzs]

hmm got me thinking.. i sometimes use a debit card online.. that is real bad right?? I cannot claim back off a debit card?

Its alright steve mine is a debit card and they are refunding mine .As colin said dos'ent matter were you shop you can still get caught just check your statements from time to time .

[Steve]

thanks guys..

[Fidgits]

In essence, shopping online is as secure as in any shop (and more so than a restaraunt).

There are really only 2 points to be aware of:

1. Ensure there is SSL encryption, on Internet Explorer this shows up as a padlock at the bottom of the screen.

2. Only use sites you trust, by this i mean well known ones, if you aren't sure about the company, think twice.

As long as the padlock is present, then it is impossible to gain any details via snooping.

However, the weakest element in online shopping is the database, you may remember amazon was hacked in its early days, and all its customer info was posted on the web. This was simply due to the fact the server where they stored the details was not secure enough.

So, if possible, always remove card details, just in case.

Shopping online is perfectly safe, and its easier for someone to get your credit card details in a restaraunt or at an ATM than off the web.

[mudzs]

In essence, shopping online is as secure as in any shop (and more so than a restaraunt).

There are really only 2 points to be aware of:

1. Ensure there is SSL encryption, on Internet Explorer this shows up as a padlock at the bottom of the screen.

2. Only use sites you trust, by this i mean well known ones, if you aren't sure about the company, think twice.

As long as the padlock is present, then it is impossible to gain any details via snooping.

However, the weakest element in online shopping is the database, you may remember Amazon was hacked in its early days, and all its customer info was posted on the web. This was simply due to the fact the server where they stored the details was not secure enough.

So, if possible, always remove card details, just in case.

Shopping online is perfectly safe, and its easier for someone to get your credit card details in a restaraunt or at an ATM than off the web.

Why did someone not tell me about that padlock thing before

[Rodders_UK]

ALWAYS use a credit card, and never a debit card, to shop online.

With a credit card purchase, the consumer credit act requires that the credit card companies prove you purchased the good in the event of any dispute - you don't have to prove that you didn't (which is not the case with debit cards).

Also, if you spend over £100 on a credit card , the credit card company is jointly liable with the retailer in the event of any dispute.

And the seller is not allowed by law to make a charge to you card until the goods have actually been dispatched, on a credit card purchase.

[mudzs]

But my card is a visa debit card is this ok

[Dodgy]

Sorry to hear that mate. Glad to know you’re getting your money back. The same thing happened to me last year. I was on a job down Manchester way and the wife called me on my mobile. She was going off it. Apparently I'd spent £140 on Blue Movies (video) somewhere in Kent I think... She said that she knew it was me because she’d called the bank and it was my card number. I had to tell her exactly what I'd been buying whilst I’d been away. And guess what? No I didn't buy the Dam Movies (wish I had) It was the first time I'd gone to an ANNE Summers shop and bought her some sexy underwear. The same thing happened again the next month this time I was at home. PHEW! The bank refunded the money within a few days.

[TonyGoose]

I got a 6month no interest card in early 2003.

Used it to buy a telly + dyson and paid off during the 6 months.

That's it, card not been used since - or even been out of the house.

Got a statement this month with 3 items on it

Only 85quid in total but bit of a surprise.

Card co. taking care of it though.

Week or so later, invoice in post from italian co. for one of the items.

Then a phonecall last week from luxumbourg co. about the others.

Incidentally, both co's were providers of internet services via satellite.

Where i live, we've all got these plastic tubs for waste paper collection.

Wonder if some lowlife at recycling firm is collecting statements.

Otherwise, it'd be down to the tv shop, co-op or card co. site being hacked ?

Notes to self. Cancel unused cards and buy a shredder

[Fidgits]

Yep, thats a possibility.

'Dumpster diving' as its known in the US, has found its way here. People raid your rubbish for bank statements and other oddments that they can use to get cards in your name, steal money from you etc..

My advice, buy a shredder, and destroy any paper work before throwing it away..

[Rodders_UK]

But my card is a visa debit card is this ok

No mate - needs to be a credit card

[jac114]

i just got a shredder yesterday as i am now constantly worried about being done over a second time.. all my money is what i call real money not credit and i do not have any savings as such its all for bills.. and when it happened it really put be in a bad situation

[gaz51]

Deepest commiserations. I read a report earlier today of a hacker lifting 5 million numbers from a company in the USA that processes internet payments for the likes of Paypal (the report didn't actually say Paypal). The company, from which the details were nicked, claim that nothing could have been done with them but they would, wouldn't they.

Anyway I tried to find the link on BBC's business pages but couldn't so maybe it was in Motley Fools lunchtime e-mail (which I've deleted cos I'm foolish). Sorry 'bout that.

[Whitebeam]

We got done last November. We use a shredder & are careful who we buy from.

Credit card company notified us about abuse as the scammers were using a name nothing like ours and a transaction was declined.

Funny thing was it was small amounts - all under £20 except for one. As the name was completely wrong I assumed it was someone with a card number generator as most other scams would have got a name as well.

Makes you wonder about some companies security as 6 of the transactions had cleared - wrong name and all. All purchases were from internet sites, we wondered if some sites dont bother checking for small amounts?

Card company were very good, all money refunded & new cards within a week. Seems to be getting quite common.

Be careful out there!

[GCHQAgent]

Credit card fraud on the Internet is rare but when it does happen the criminals usually manage to obtain the details of a large number of cards in one go.

The most common place for this type of fraud to occur is when you go out and part with your card for a few minutes (like at a restaurant). In these situations the staff are usually paid about £100 for each card they swipe into a hand-held card reader. For Gold, Platinum and Black cards additional bonuses are paid to the swipers.

The banks don't particularly care, it is the merchant that loses out as the banks will take money from them if an order is placed with a fraudulent card. The merchants are often powerless to do anything since the police do not have the resources to investigate and the merchant themselves might be small and not have the resources in tracking down the fraudsters.

Banks need to be forced to take greater measures to protect merchants. For every fraudulent transaction carried out with a credit card, the customers are reimbursed by the banks and the banks take the money from the merchant.

This hurts our economy, the merchants either have to charge more for their goods to cover the cost of fraud or in some cases completely go out of business. :(

[Nodstar]

Sorry to hear about you being stung mate.. luckily the insurance will cover it.. I've never had a credit card and recently thought about getting one.. It's a ball ache doing Bank transfers and they still aren't safe but I'm stuck in my ways, and upto now I've been lucky and everything has been fine... Hope you get it sorted out quickly.. :winky:

[tdiplc]

Credit card fraud on the Internet is rare but when it does happen the criminals usually manage to obtain the details of a large number of cards in one go.

The most common place for this type of fraud to occur is when you go out and part with your card for a few minutes (like at a restaurant). In these situations the staff are usually paid about £100 for each card they swipe into a hand-held card reader. For Gold, Platinum and Black cards additional bonuses are paid to the swipers.

The banks don't particularly care, it is the merchant that loses out as the banks will take money from them if an order is placed with a fraudulent card. The merchants are often powerless to do anything since the police do not have the resources to investigate and the merchant themselves might be small and not have the resources in tracking down the fraudsters.

Banks need to be forced to take greater measures to protect merchants. For every fraudulent transaction carried out with a credit card, the customers are reimbursed by the banks and the banks take the money from the merchant.

This hurts our economy, the merchants either have to charge more for their goods to cover the cost of fraud or in some cases completely go out of business. :(

Quite right. It is always the Merchant that ends up paying not the card holder.

Credit card statements do not show the expiry date or security numbers needed for a mail order transaction, so I don't think that the details are reaped from rubbish bins. They are swiped by criminals working in shops, restaurants and garages.

I wonder how many people still throw their credit card receipts in the bin at a petrol statement ( I used to ).

They only other way of getting the details is by poor security by online shops and banks.

[Chris.S]

I make sure that my credit card slips or statements and bank statements for that matter either get shredded or burnt these days.

[Scorpion]

Now i've got a shredder but before that,when i got the receipt for whatever i bought i would carefully tear out the last 4 digits of the card number and throw it away(it was so tiny you'd never think about picking it up from the floor)!!!

I try not to let my card out of my sight,the worst place is restaurants where the waiter wanders off with your card.

Be vigilant and trust nobody with your cards.

[mudzs]

I did not relise until yeterday that your card no and expiry date is printed on the receipt .why is this nessacary.