Recognizing Types of Credit Card Fraud

Credit card fraud can take many different forms, and in order to protect your business and your customers, you should be able to recognize the types of fraud. Sensitive credit card information can be compromised even if your credit card is not physically stolen from your wallet. Read on for more details on credit card fraud, including phishing scams, counterfeit cards and identity theft.

Phishing Scams

A common type of online credit card fraud is the phishing e-mail scam, which is designed by thieves to look like an e-mail from banks, financial institutions, social networking sites, and even friends or co-workers. By using official-looking logos or information about friends, these e-mails often appear to be legitimate. They prompt the reader to enter log-in information or passwords to verify accounts, with links to illegitimate websites. Once sensitive information is obtained, thieves can use the data for fraudulent activity. Banks, financial institutions and other companies normally do not ask for account information online, so customers who receive this type of e-mail should confirm with the company by phone before responding.

Counterfeit Credit Cards

The ability to recognize counterfeit credit cards is crucial to preventing credit card fraud during face-to-face transactions. Counterfeiting involves taking a real credit card and using the information from the magnetic strip to create a fake card. This fraud often involves Canadian credit cards, as people are less familiar with them in the United States. Merchants are held liable for accepting counterfeit credit cards, resulting in hefty fines that can be devastating for business. Identifying counterfeit card simply requires knowing what to look for. Real credit cards have special features that make them hard to replicate, such as standard specifications regarding color, tint, style, holograms and other details.

Identity Theft

When thieves gain access to certain personal documents, such as driver’s license, Social Security cards or credit card numbers, they can use the sensitive information to perform fraudulent activity. They can open bank accounts, set up bill payments and even apply for a job under the stolen identity. Identity thieves gain this information by going through trash and accessing non-shredded documents, or performing a phishing scam to obtain passwords. In order to prevent identity theft, consumers must always keep important documents locked up and be sure to shred before throwing them away.

Maintaining security through PCI-compliant security measures is one of the most effective ways to protect credit card data. Want to lean more about PCI compliance and secure credit card processing solutions? We can help!