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Credit Card Theft
11/20/08 - 09:19 PM
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As the holidays draw near authorities say incidents of credit card theft and identity theft will likely go up.  So what can you do to protect yourself?

Experts say it’s wise to write “see ID” on the back of your credit card instead of signing it.  If you do that the cashier should ask for identification before you can use the card.  It doesn’t always happen though, so make sure you take other precautions as well.

Drew Baldy used his credit card to make some purchases online.  The next thing he knew someone else was using his number.

“The company VISA thought something fishy was going on so they contacted me to let me know.  I looked and I only had $100 in purchases and there was $150 to $200 worth of stuff being purchased online,” Baldy recalls.

Shopping online is easy and convenient, but it can be dangerous.  Before you check-out look to see if the address bar in your internet browser reads “https” to ensure you’re on a secure website.  If you still suspect the website is not safe, there’s another way you can check it’s security.

“If you’re concerned that it is a fraudulent page and it has a security lock you can double click on the security lock and it will open a page that tells you who the certificate is from.  It should tell you it’s from that vendor you’re using.  That gives you a little extra comfort that you know exactly who you are dealing with at that point,” said Debbi Dial with Tyndall Federal Credit Union.

One of the most important things you can do is pay attention.

“You should do this all the time, but particularly during the holidays make sure you’re looking at your statements.  Make sure you’re looking at your account balances to see if there is anything unusual going on,” Dial said.

If your credit card or number gets stolen call your bank or credit card company as soon as you can to cancel the card.  Since the number to call is probably on the back of your credit card, you might want to keep a list of your cards and the numbers to call to deactivate in a safe place for future reference.

If you’re traveling out of town for the holidays it’s also a good idea to contact your credit card company and your bank.  Let them know where you’ll be so they don’t block transactions from somewhere that appears unusual.