How To Protect Credit Card Information—Best Practices To Follow
The consequences of being a reckless credit cardholder can be dire. More than $33 billion was lost to payment card fraud worldwide in 2022, according to the Nilson Report. Besides the financial impact, negligence can result in a damaged credit score, tarnished reputation, and limitations to financial freedom.
To avoid these unnecessary stressors, you should be mindful when using your credit card and employ all available security measures. This article will give you some pointers, explaining how to:
- Check whether your credit card information has been compromised
- Keep your credit card safe from physical theft and skimming
- Protect credit card information from online fraud
How To Check Whether Your Credit Card Information Has Been Stolen
A good starting point for checking if your credit card information has been compromised is reviewing the transaction history and statements of each card you own. You should look out for any charges you or a family member didn't make. It’s advisable to turn on transaction and security alerts in your e-banking account so you can detect fraud immediately.
Checking your credit score is another important step for identifying fraud. If it’s lower than expected, that could be a sign that someone has applied for credit in your name. You can find out your score through your banking app or statement, if available, as well as by purchasing it from the credit bureaus or FICO. Some websites and services offer credit score monitoring as well.
You can also check your email for any data breach notifications. In most cases, companies that store your data after you’ve signed up for their product or service have an obligation to inform you when your data has been exposed, especially if harm is likely to occur.
Here are some more signs that can indicate your credit card information has been compromised:
- Notification of a denied loan or credit you didn’t apply for
- New account in your e-banking account or bank statements
- Confirmation of annual tax filing you didn’t complete
- Bills for services you didn’t pay for
How To Protect Your Physical Credit Card
It’s important to store your credit card in a safe place. You shouldn’t share it with or loan it to anyone. If you can’t find your credit card, freeze the account if possible and contact your card issuer immediately.
Before using a remote and unattended ATM or PoS terminal, you should check whether it’s been tampered with. Some fraudsters install skimmers or shimmers on card readers to capture your credit card information. You can detect these devices by:
- Inspecting the reader for misaligned or bulky parts
- Looking for the security tape and examining whether it’s been ripped
- Comparing the card reader to others at the location
- Wiggling or pulling some parts of the reader to see if they’re loose
- Trying the keypad and checking whether the buttons are off-center or hard to push
How To Protect Credit Card Information Online
The shift to digital transactions has brought a surge in online card fraud methods. Card-not-present fraud has been on the rise and is expected to rise again in 2024, making up around three-quarters of all payment fraud losses. Adapting and taking all the measures available to keep your credit card safe online is essential.
We've organized credit card fraud prevention advice into five groups for your convenience:
- Online account management tips
- Online shopping safety tips
- Device security tips
- Fraud reporting tips
- Information protection tips
Online Account Management Tips
When setting up your online credit card account, follow the guidelines in the following table to reduce the likelihood of illicit access and use:
Online Shopping Safety Tips
If you’re purchasing from a merchant for the first time, it’s advisable to research them by reading user reviews and checking their website’s connection security. Secure websites have the “https://” prefix in their web address and a padlock symbol next to it.
To protect your credit card, you should only make purchases when connected to a secure Wi-Fi or mobile network. Public Wi-Fi networks can be used by hackers to spy on your activity.
When completing a transaction, you shouldn’t save your credit card details on the website as they can become exposed in case of a data breach.
Device Security Tips
You should install updates on all your devices as soon as you get the notification that an update is available. They often include crucial security upgrades.
It’s also always a smart choice to install antivirus software and other security apps to protect your credit card online. Doing so will allow you to detect and block malicious websites, emails, and software.
Fraud Reporting Tips
In case you can’t locate your credit card or notice a suspicious charge, you should:
- Freeze your account immediately if you have the option.
- Notify your credit card issuer of the incident as soon as possible.
- Change your passwords.
- Keep monitoring your account.
By taking swift action, you can avoid further and more severe consequences, such as identity theft.
Information Protection Tips
Phishing is an increasingly prevalent and sophisticated type of scam that targets your sensitive information. The perpetrator imitates a real person or business you’re involved with and contacts you via email or phone, requesting your information to verify your account, collect an additional service fee, or deliver an unexpected reward. Legitimate businesses never operate this way, so you should ignore such requests.
Some fraudsters may not request the information directly but rather send you a link to a fake website that can steal your information if you provide it. You shouldn’t click on these links or download any suspicious attachments you receive as they could infect your device with viruses or other types of malware and steal your information.
Even if the merchant and their website are legitimate, there’s always a risk of data exposure when you provide your credit card information online. That’s why you should use virtual cards for your online transactions.
Virtual cards are linked to an actual funding source and function equivalently to regular cards. The difference is that they come with a unique card number, expiration date, and security code, masking your actual financial information during transactions. When you use a virtual card to shop online, you significantly limit the risk of your data becoming compromised should a merchant breach occur.
With an independent virtual card provider like Privacy, you can also enjoy additional security features, advanced spending controls, and seamless checkouts.
Protect Your Online Payments With Privacy Virtual Cards
If you have a debit card or bank account, you can connect it to Privacy and generate multiple virtual cards for different online purchases. Privacy is BBB®-accredited and offers bank-level security, including features such as two-factor authentication and notifications when your cards are used or declined.
You can create two types of Privacy Virtual Cards—Single-Use and Merchant-Locked. When unsure of the merchant’s security practices, you can use a Single-Use Card. This card closes soon after you’ve made the purchase, so it’s useless for hackers who may access it. A Merchant-Locked Card becomes “locked” to one vendor, so it’s ideal for websites you shop with frequently and subscription services.
You can pause or close your Privacy Cards at any time. Privacy will block further transaction attempts, stopping any unexpected charges from sneaky merchants. You can also set spending limits—Privacy will decline all exceeding charges and protect against accidental overcharging or overspending.
Other Benefits You Enjoy With Privacy
Privacy offers many other features to make protecting your financial information simple. You can learn about some of them in the following table:
How To Get Your Privacy Virtual Cards
If you’d like to start using Privacy Virtual Cards, you only need to:
- Sign up
- Provide the information needed to verify your identity
- Add your debit card or bank account
- Request and create your first Privacy Card
Privacy Cards are issued by Visa® and Mastercard®, so you can use them to shop at most merchants and websites you’re used to, including eBay, Amazon, and AliExpress.
Privacy’s Personal plan is free for domestic transactions and comes with 12 virtual cards a month, all card controls, and access to the browser extension and mobile app. You can always upgrade to Pro ($10/month) or Premium ($25/month) if you need additional features like:
- Up to 60 cards per month
- No foreign transaction fees
- Priority support
- 1% cashback on eligible purchases (totaling up to $4,500 a month)
