Thursday, February 14, 2008
Identity Theft Using Credit Cards
With online commerce growing everyday, using credit cards is the easiest and most convenient mode of online payment. And during the early years of online transactions, the use of credit cards has spawned a new breed of criminals that have made a living at the expense of these credit card owners. It's now more commonly known as Identity Theft. The new crime emerging in the last years of the 20th century and is only now being recognized for the damage it can do to many unsuspecting credit card holders.
What Gets Stolen?
Identity theft is basically a crime of stealing personal data for personal gain. Credit card numbers, bank account numbers, Social Security numbers and PIN are the most common personal data that can get you into trouble once stolen or lost. And of these, Credit card numbers are the easiest.
There are basically three ways that credit card data can fall into unscrupulous hands. Firstly, thieves can just take note of your credit card number when you use them in merchant stores. Every card holder is vulnerable. Even when paying for your meals in a restaurant can be risky. You'll never know if the waitress or cashier is in cahoots with some syndicate preying on unwary customers paying with their cards.
Secondly, thieves can hack into unsecured online transactions to capture not only your card information but also the other personal data typically required to effect an online payment for card verification. Telephone purchases can also be eavesdropped to surreptitiously obtain such information. Lastly, lost and stolen credit cards find their way in the hands of unscrupulous people who find the window between the time they are lost and the time the card is reported.
So what Do We Do About It?
There is only so much a credit card user can do to minimize the risk of falling victim to Identity Theft. Credit cards in themselves have very low security features against fraud. Those holograph symbols are there to prevent fraudulent duplication of the card. But the card itself is not necessary to make fraudulent transactions. Bear in mind that many merchants accept "Not Present Credit Purchases", so there is no need for the physical credit card or the person owning it for a purchase to take place.
For online transactions, most reputable online merchants are using security encryption schemes to protect its customers. Online customers are now advised to refrain from making such payments on the net on merchant sites that do not use such schemes. And there are secure payment sites like PayPal and other payment bureaus that use encryption methods that make it increasingly difficult for online hackers to steal your credit card and personal data.
The FBI and the US Postal Inspection Services are the government agencies tasked with combating credit frauds. But prosecution is often initiated for frauds committed involving $5000 and above. The bureaus are constrained by limited resources to pursue all criminals. The best way to do for us consumers is to really get a good grip of our cards and be constantly updated for credit protection methods.
What Gets Stolen?
Identity theft is basically a crime of stealing personal data for personal gain. Credit card numbers, bank account numbers, Social Security numbers and PIN are the most common personal data that can get you into trouble once stolen or lost. And of these, Credit card numbers are the easiest.
There are basically three ways that credit card data can fall into unscrupulous hands. Firstly, thieves can just take note of your credit card number when you use them in merchant stores. Every card holder is vulnerable. Even when paying for your meals in a restaurant can be risky. You'll never know if the waitress or cashier is in cahoots with some syndicate preying on unwary customers paying with their cards.
Secondly, thieves can hack into unsecured online transactions to capture not only your card information but also the other personal data typically required to effect an online payment for card verification. Telephone purchases can also be eavesdropped to surreptitiously obtain such information. Lastly, lost and stolen credit cards find their way in the hands of unscrupulous people who find the window between the time they are lost and the time the card is reported.
So what Do We Do About It?
There is only so much a credit card user can do to minimize the risk of falling victim to Identity Theft. Credit cards in themselves have very low security features against fraud. Those holograph symbols are there to prevent fraudulent duplication of the card. But the card itself is not necessary to make fraudulent transactions. Bear in mind that many merchants accept "Not Present Credit Purchases", so there is no need for the physical credit card or the person owning it for a purchase to take place.
For online transactions, most reputable online merchants are using security encryption schemes to protect its customers. Online customers are now advised to refrain from making such payments on the net on merchant sites that do not use such schemes. And there are secure payment sites like PayPal and other payment bureaus that use encryption methods that make it increasingly difficult for online hackers to steal your credit card and personal data.
The FBI and the US Postal Inspection Services are the government agencies tasked with combating credit frauds. But prosecution is often initiated for frauds committed involving $5000 and above. The bureaus are constrained by limited resources to pursue all criminals. The best way to do for us consumers is to really get a good grip of our cards and be constantly updated for credit protection methods.
# posted by Medical Information : 2:04 AM
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