Protecting yourself from card fraud and identity theft

Debit and credit cards have replaced cash as the main way that people pay for goods and services now.

Handing over your bank card to a shop assistant is much simpler than counting out cash and carrying around pockets of change, but it has also created a whole new criminal industry.

Card fraud in the UK costs around £450million a year and although various initiatives are being launched to tackle the problem, the criminals are coming up with new ways to strike.

The arrival of “chip and PIN” means that if someone steals or finds your card they can no longer use it in a shop by simply forging your signature; they will need to know your PIN number as well. However, if someone knows your account number and the three-digit security number on the back of the card, there is nothing to stop them buying goods and services over the internet or by telephone. This “Card Not Present” fraud is the most common type of card fraud in Britain.

Another increasingly common problem is “skimming”. This is where someone swipes your card into a machine that copies the electronic data stored in the magnetic strip that cards have. This has been known to happen in petrol stations and bars, where the cashier swipes the card in the copying machine, says something like “it hasn’t worked, let me try again” and they swipe it again in the genuine machine. The information is then normally sold on to organised criminal gangs.

The third major type of card fraud is through identity theft. A criminal will rummage through your bins to collect bank statements, utility bills etc and use them as identification to open new bank accounts in your name. With a bit more research, criminals can easily find out things like pet’s names and your mother’s maiden name, and use this additional information to call your bank and get them to transfer money into another account, or change the address so new cards and cheque books are sent directly to the criminal.

Here are a few things you can do to try and minimise the risk of becoming a victim of these types of fraud:

• Don’t put documents containing personal information (especially bank statements and receipts) in the bin without shredding them. Shredders for home use can be bought quite cheaply, or else you could burn unwanted documents in a metal bin. Always make sure you take the receipt with you when you use an ATM
• Try to memorise your PIN number and never keep it written down in your wallet with your cards
• When withdrawing cash from an ATM check to see if the machine has been tampered with in any way because “skimming” devices can be fitted to them. Also make sure nobody can see over your shoulder when you enter the PIN
• When using your card in shops and restaurants, don’t let it out of your sight. Most places use hand-held “chip and PIN” machines now, so insist the machine is brought to your table. This will stop anyone from taking your card away and copying down the details or skimming it
• Be very careful when using your card to buy items over the internet and only enter card details on sites you are confident are secure. Try to use a computer that you know has up-to-date anti-virus software installed
• Don’t leave bank cards lying around where others could see them. Don’t leave them on your desk at work while you go for lunch etc
• Be extremely wary of emails claiming to be from banks asking you to confirm any details, particularly account or PIN numbers. Banks will never ask you to confirm secure information via email
• Check your bank balance regularly and look closely at your statements to see if there are any withdrawals you cannot account for
• If you lose a bank card, or it is stolen, cancel it at the first available opportunity. If it is lost on a Sunday don’t wait until the Monday morning to report it, all banks are contactable 24/7

If you do become a victim of card fraud, or even suspect that someone has cloned your card or obtained card details, contact your bank straight away because cancelling the card will prevent any further unauthorised withdrawals.
In most cases the bank will refund any money taken from your account, but you will need to visit a branch to fill out a fraud form so the bank can investigate and you should report it to the police.

www.cardwatch.org.uk
www.identitytheft.org.uk

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