There is a great article in today’s New York Times by Ron Lieber. It is titled: “Consumers Not Powerless in the Face of Card Fraud.”
Lieber’s article covers:
- Alerts and Other Tools
- The On/Off Switch
- Chip Cards
Click the image to read Lieber’s tips.
Art by Robert Neubecker
By now, after reading almost daily about some cyber attack or hacking, people should at a minimum have alerts set up for their debit/credit cards to inform them of suspicious account activity and so on. It is for your own protection. The on/off switch that Lieber mentions is a cool idea, although I would agree with Visa’s CLO that people would forget that their card is switched off and subsequently be annoyed when it doesn’t work.
I think this is really important especially with today’s technology. Credit card fraud is very relevant and has become a serious problem. It upsets me reading about my own bank not having any plans to improve their safety precautions. It makes me think about how safe my money actually is.
This article was very interesting to me, being that I have a debit card and sooner or later will be needing a credit card. I am surprised that most banks have not adopted at least some of these new technologies, especially the “on/off switch” for cards. Every new idea will come with some sort of backlash or minor setback, but if it can help avoid fraud then remembering to turn back “on” your cards shouldn’t be a huge deal. Also, I use TD Bank and was surprised to see that they weren’t mentioned at all in this article. I’m not sure if that’s a good or bad sign!
This is a relevant issue happening a lot more frequently then one would think. My bank is a small bank located in Pennsylvania and South Jersey. I am a loyal customer because my Mom works there. Now that I go to school in New york, I am always shopping in this area. One time I spent a large amount at department store and my credit card had a hold on it for the amount because I was not in PA. I had to call the bank and let them know about this issue and they said it was for security purposes. I am glad that these measures are taken for precautionary reasons.