Just imagine checking your credit card details one fine day,
only to find many fictitious purchases in your name, with the
amount running into several thousands , or maybe even lakhs.
Well, it is highly debatable whether you can stay calm and
composed after that. But this, and other kinds of credit card
misuse, has been in vogue of late and though there haven’t been
too many such cases, it is only advisable to follow the wise
‘better safe than sorry’ policy.
Coming to the latest incident, the miscreants used the art of
‘skimming’ Explaining this, Arindam Bhattacharya, an ex-banker and now a
consultant with a leading banking software development company
in Mumbai, says, “All your personal data is stored inside the
black magnetic strip of the card.
Miscreants mostly use a small keypad and an extra swipe on a
scanning machine makes all that confidential information get
copied. They then plant the same on plastic cards and have dummy
cards that can be easily used without the owner’s knowledge.”
So, better be alert the next time you visit a restaurant. “You
should personally go to the cashier instead of handing over the
card to a waiter,” is how Bhattacharya puts it.
He also adds that the concerned people at cash counters of
shopping outlets “should verify signatures.”Internet transactions may make you feel all empowered and on top of the world, but there are risks involved. Also, for internet transactions, Bhattacharya says that one should “preferably use
one’s own PC as softwares may be installed to capture details of
your card” and also “log out completely from the site once the
transaction is over.”
Dos
Preferably use your own PC during Internet transactions.
Log out from the site after the transaction . Be present
personally when card is swiped.
Strike out the CVV number and write it down somewhere else.
Check your account balance regularly.
Don’ts
Never hand over your card to anybody. Try and avoid cyber cafes
for internet transactions.
Never disclose your password or card/CVV number.
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