4 Risky Places To Use A Debit Card: You may be giving thieves access to your checking account by regularly using your debit card. Debit cards may look identical to credit cards, but theres one key difference: With credit cards, users who spot fraudulent charges on their bill can simply decline the charges and not pay the bill. On the other hand, debit cards draw money directly from your checking account rather than from an intermediary such as a credit card company. Because of that, even clear-cut cases of fraud where victims are protected from liability by consumer protection laws can cause significant hardship. While debit card fraud is always a possibility, being careful where you use it can help keep your checking account balance out of the hands of criminals. Here are some things to be mindful of. Outdoor ATMs. They are among the most dangerous places to use a debit card because they can present a perfect opportunity for thieves to skim users debit cards. Skimming is the practice of capturing a bank customers card information by running it through a machine that reads the cards magnetic strip. Those machines are often placed over the real card slots at ATMs. Outdoor ATMs offer an easy opportunity to add skimming devices, position cameras and spy on transactions. You can spot ATM skimmers by checking for ATM components that look beaten up or askew. You�e better off using an ATM inside a retail outlet or other high-trafficked, well-lit place. Gas stations. In a gas station its pretty easy for a bad guy to install a skimming device and arrange a little pinpoint camera to capture footage of debit card users entering their personal identification number, or PIN, so they can have free access to their money. Even if the thief doesnt manage to get your debit card PIN from such a device, he still may be able to duplicate the cards magnetic strip and use it for sign and swipe Visa or MasterCard transactions. Online Purchases. The Web is one of the most dangerous places to make purchases with a debit card. The consumer could have malware on their computer, so it could be at their endpoint that the data get compromised. It could be a man-in-the-middle attack where somebody is eavesdropping on their communications via the wireless network. And then at the other end, that data goes into a database at the merchant. As weve seen with some of the higher-profile breach events over the last year or so, that data is going to be vulnerable if not properly cared for. Restaurants. The server comes to your table, takes your card and disappears for a while, so he or she has privacy, giving them the opportunity to copy your card information. Even restaurants without sit-down service can present a threat. Using debit cards to order delivery can be risky because cashiers tend to keep customer payment information on file. That may make future orders more convenient, but small businesses rarely take the steps necessary to safeguard payment information.
Posted on: Thu, 02 Oct 2014 20:19:53 +0000
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