Card
frauds are on the rise. Find out how to keep your plastic money safe and what
to do if you are a victim of identity theft.
Who is your
greatest financial foe? The corrupt agent, the con artist or a complacent you?
Surprised to see yourself in the list? Don't be. The truth is that sometimes
our own ignorance or negligence leaves a door ajar to our financial lives, an
opportunity that a hacker or fraudster is lying in wait to get through to raid
us. One of the most susceptible instruments is credit cards and the way we use
them.
We flaunt them in the open, swipe them on sundry shopping portals and post personal details as status messages on social networks. If you're wearing a sceptical expression after reading the last one, wipe it away. Hackers can use personal data to impersonate you at a bank or financial institution and get more information about your credit card.
"In a day, a person will visit one payment site, which will have stringent security in place, and 99 nonpayment sites that may be somewhat lax. He will probably share some personal information, such as his date of birth or mother's maiden name. Hackers simply amass such information, collate it and sell it to a third party," warns UttamNayak, group country manager, India & South Asia, Visa. While everyone agrees that plastic is the most convenient way to pay, many are wary of using credit cards as they believe these are highly prone to frauds.
However, what they miss is the silver lining. If you can prove to your bank that your card has been used for a fraudulent transaction, there is a good chance of recovering your money, which isn't the case if you lose cash.
So, don't cut up all your cards. Instead, recognise your vulnerable areas, know how you can fortify your security and what should be your strategy if your card is misused. Beware of bugs Whether it's the physical world or the digital one, watch out for all malicious elements that are trying to worm their way into your wallet.
When you use your card, check that nobody is peering over your shoulder to memorise the card number or, worse, click a photo with his mobile phone. Another way that thieves steal card data is by skimming them. They copy the information that is embedded in the magnetic strip and then clone it on a counterfeit card.
Source:
We flaunt them in the open, swipe them on sundry shopping portals and post personal details as status messages on social networks. If you're wearing a sceptical expression after reading the last one, wipe it away. Hackers can use personal data to impersonate you at a bank or financial institution and get more information about your credit card.
"In a day, a person will visit one payment site, which will have stringent security in place, and 99 nonpayment sites that may be somewhat lax. He will probably share some personal information, such as his date of birth or mother's maiden name. Hackers simply amass such information, collate it and sell it to a third party," warns UttamNayak, group country manager, India & South Asia, Visa. While everyone agrees that plastic is the most convenient way to pay, many are wary of using credit cards as they believe these are highly prone to frauds.
However, what they miss is the silver lining. If you can prove to your bank that your card has been used for a fraudulent transaction, there is a good chance of recovering your money, which isn't the case if you lose cash.
So, don't cut up all your cards. Instead, recognise your vulnerable areas, know how you can fortify your security and what should be your strategy if your card is misused. Beware of bugs Whether it's the physical world or the digital one, watch out for all malicious elements that are trying to worm their way into your wallet.
When you use your card, check that nobody is peering over your shoulder to memorise the card number or, worse, click a photo with his mobile phone. Another way that thieves steal card data is by skimming them. They copy the information that is embedded in the magnetic strip and then clone it on a counterfeit card.
Source:
Posts
0 comments :
Post a Comment