Posted: November 15th, 2010 | Author: Joe | Filed under: Credit, Tips | Tags: Credit, credit card identity theft, Credit Cards, Credit score, Tips | No Comments »
According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), identity theft ranked as the number 1 consumer complaint, accounting for 21% of all complaints it handled affecting over 1.3 million people. It’s no wonder that in the information age, stealing people’s identity (which is nothing more than personally identifiable information) would be so rampant. What may be surprising is just how easily it happens. Here are 4 all to common (and low-tech) ways thieves can steal your identity.
1. They take a picture of you scanning your card and entering your pin while you’re checking out. They’ll need to be near you, or just behind you and they’ll likely be posing as though they’re looking at their phone.
2. They tour around your neighborhood after you leave for work in the morning, or before you get home. They’re looking for bills you might be sending with personal information, or credit card offers and bills being sent to you.
3. They drive through the neighborhood in the wee hours of the morning (night), looking for garbage bags. They take the garbage, and sort through it later.
4. They attach a device called a “skimmer” to ATM’s. Skimmers sit between you and the ATM, so it looks like you’re putting your card in the ATM, but in reality you’re giving it to the skimmer – and the thief.
Why I don't own a shredder. 
As you can see, identity thieves don’t need to hack your computer to put you in a bad spot. Your mailbox alone can be a
gold mine. Think of how much damage they can do with convenience checks that your credit card company is nice enough to send out. To limit this as much as possible, be sure to
call 888-5-OPTOUT and call your credit card company and ask that they stop sending convenience checks.
It’s also for this reason that you should use an office shredder, and shred anything and everything that has your name, account number or even address on it, lest it end up in the hands of the wrong people.
Debit cards are another big risk. I know a lot a people advocate debit cards over credit cards because they help limit spending, but if a thief gets hold of your debit card number and pin, then he has access to your whole bank account. At least with a credit card it’s the issuer who’s out the money while you sort things out and you still have the money in your bank to pay the bills. This is why credit cards are more secure than debit.
If your bank or credit card company offers it, consider getting a card with your picture on it.
Also, try to use secure ATM’s – the kind with doors that only open with a valid bank card, or an ATM in a public place in plain site, like the kind in stores. It’s a lot more difficult to attach a skimmer in high-traffic, public areas. Using the same ATM helps as well, since you’re more apt to noticed something different.
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Posted: March 24th, 2008 | Author: Joe | Filed under: Credit | Tags: Credit, credit card identity theft | No Comments »
Some people get careless with their personal information. Some people shop online at websites that are less than reputable. This isn’t me. That’s part of the reason I was surprised to log into my credit card account website to access my statement and see:
Account Alert : Your account has been closed, because it was reported lost or stolen. Please register your new account number now to access Account Online.
How did it happen, you ask? I shopped at Hannaford.
Hannaford is a regional grocery store, here in the North Eastern United States. My wife and I shop there for the grocery items that are not on sale at any of the other stores. They have pretty good selections and prices on most things, but not many sales. My wife routinely saves about $40 a week by splitting up the purchases… but that’s a topic for a different post.
Over the past week or so, Hannaford has announced that its computer system has been “compromised” and 4.2 million customer credit and debit card numbers have been stolen. Jeeesh! It’s bad enough I’ve got to watch my back when I’m shopping at stores I don’t know online, but now I have to watch my friendly neighborhood grocery chain too!
To be realistic, there’s not much I can do to prevent this sort of thing in the future. The best thing I can do is to pay with cash or credit and avoid using a debit card whenever possible.
This seems to contradict what a lot of people think about using credit and staying out of debt. In fact the conventional “debt-free” thinking is to cut up your credit cards and only use debit cards. I think this is sound advice for people who have a hard time controlling their spending. But for people who can pay off the balance every month, then a Credit card is safer. In the event that your card gets stolen, your liability is far greater with a debit card. If a thief gets hold of your debit card number, then they have complete and total access to your bank account.
True, you won’t technically be liable for the purchases a thief makes on your stolen card, but you’ll have a painful process to endure while you sort it all out with your bank and you could even rack up mountains of overdraft fees.
With a credit card though, you have the luxury of not having to pay for any disputed charges – and you can only be held accountable for up to $50 if you report your card in a timely fashion:
“Credit Card Loss or Fraudulent Charges (FCBA). Your maximum liability under federal law for unauthorized use of your credit card is $50. If you report the loss before your credit cards are used, the FCBA says the card issuer cannot hold you responsible for any unauthorized charges. If a thief uses your cards before you report them missing, the most you will owe for unauthorized charges is $50 per card. Also, if the loss involves your credit card number, but not the card itself, you have no liability for unauthorized use.”
That’s from the Federal Trade Commission website.
Here’s what they say regarding ATM or Debit cards:
“For example, if you report the loss within two business days after you realize your card is missing, you will not be responsible for more than $50 for unauthorized use. However, if you don’t report the loss within two business days after you discover the loss, you could lose up to $500 because of an unauthorized transfer. You also risk unlimited loss if you fail to report an unauthorized transfer within 60 days after your bank statement containing unauthorized use is mailed to you. That means you could lose all the money in your bank account and the unused portion of your line of credit established for overdrafts. However, for unauthorized transfers involving only your debit card number (not the loss of the card), you are liable only for transfers that occur after 60 days following the mailing of your bank statement containing the unauthorized use and before you report the loss.”
So, you can see that the credit card offers a greater level of protection from unauthorized purchases. Just make sure you pay off the balance every month!
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