Protect your Debit Card from Identity Theft
The humble debit card has been a part of our lives in America for a while now. It has gone from a card to use at the ATM to a card that has, all but, replaced your checkbook. It can be used pretty much everywhere with the support of credit card companies like Visa and MasterCard, you can use it pretty much anywhere they are accepted. The beauty of the system is its convenience, speed, and it’s a cheap way to accept payments from just about anyone. There is a downside to check cards and with a little bit of knowledge you can keep your cards safe from an identity theft.
Debit cards are less secure than a credit cards. Debit cards have some of the same security features as some credit cards but the problem lies in how the card is handled in case of an identity theft. With a debit card typically when fraudulent charges occur, you have to wait till the issue it cleared up to receive your money back. With a credit card you can many times put off paying the bill until the problem is resolved. This means you don’t have money missing during the investigation.
Another thing to look out for is cashiers adding “cash-back” to your total without you knowing. Many businesses offer cash back for your convenience, but make sure the cashier doesn’t add cash back and never give it to you. It might be as little as $5, but it adds up after several transactions and the cashier can walk away for the night with a pretty good lump sum.
If you have a credit card with a RFID chip, that allows you to pay without swiping your card, you might want to watch-out for people trying scan for your card. Research has shown that it’s possible for people to use a souped up scanner to get the information off your RFID chip embedded in your card. There’s not a lot you can do about this because depending on the scanner they might not even need to be that close you or your card. They could scan your card while standing behind you in line. There are however, some wallets on the market that claim they can block RFID signals from leaving or entering your wallet. If you are so inclined that might be a good thing to look into.
Don’t forget that all people need to make a copy of your credit card is a photo of the front and back. With as many cell phones that can take picture on the market today, it’s not surprising that this has becomes a problem. They can then make their own version of your card and use it, and you get to pay the bills. So don’t make it easy for people to photograph your card, keep it in your wallet and when your done swiping it made sure to put it right back. The less time someone has to snap a picture of the front and back of your card the less likely you are to see a debit card identity theft.
Tags: debit card, ID theft, identity theft, identity theft protection