Sam Qam asked:




Online purchasing has in recent years skyrocketed into a massive industry with millions of purchases being made online everyday from a vast variety of online retailers. However, this massive influx of internet purchasing has brought with it a vast increase of online credit card fraud and fraudulent sites. Thousands of online shoppers have their details stolen online and as a result loose thousands of pounds to fraudsters. But how can these thieves be caught out and how do you protect yourself?

In the online marketplace it’s a little more complicated than someone lifting your wallet out of your back pocket and there are no 100% methods of ensuring you’re completely safe. There are however steps you can take to reduce the risks.

First and foremost ensure that the sites you are using are secure. It’s always better to use a site that you know a friend has been using successfully for some time or a site that is advertised widely such as Amazon or Play.com. These are large sites with thousands of users, so they will have to provide the most secure methods possible for transactions. If you come across a site you haven’t heard of before then make sure you check up on it before providing your details to them.

You should NEVER provide details by email. Any respectable site will have a secure customer accounts process and won’t resort to emails. Emails are easily intercepted by fraudsters so you should never put your card or personal details in an email whether to a business or a friend.

If you are using your card online then try to make sure your bank or credit card provider offers fraud and credit card theft cover and insurance. There are a variety of credit card companies such as Egg who provide cover specifically for online shopping.

When creating an account with a company make sure that you provide a secure email that only you have access to. Also, when choosing a password, ensure that it contains both numbers and letters and is over a certain length (the minimum length for most respectable sights is over eight characters). Ensure that you do not pick anything too generic or easily guessed and don’t let other people use your site.

Respectable online retailers use secure payment gateways for online credit card processing making them more reliable and secure. With these methods and some well applied common sense your online shopping can be more secure allowing you to browse with some measure of confidence.

Jacqueline

Micah Waters asked:




Every year, fraudulent credit card purchases cost online retailers millions of dollars. Without the benefit of scrutinizing a customer and requesting additional identification in person, it can be more difficult to properly identify fraudulent charges made online. However, with a little extra time and effort, online merchants can significantly minimize their risk to fraud using the following strategies.

1. If the shipping address doesn’t match the billing address, call the customer directly to confirm the order, especially if the listed shipping address is out of the country.

2. Always require a valid phone number on orders and ensure the area code of the number matches that of the billing address. Consider calling the customer to confirm the number.

3. Be suspicious of atypical orders, such as unusually large orders or orders for an exceptionally high amount of the same item. If an order seems suspicious, conduct a little more research to determine whether or not the order is fraud.

4. Other transactions to be wary of include orders purchased using multiple credit cards but shipped to one address. Or multiple orders made with the same credit card within a short period of time.

5. Check the IP address of the customer placing the order to determine their location. Be wary of international payments that originate from “high-risk” countries or areas that are known for their high-rate of fraud, including Nigeria, Turkey, Lithuania, and Russia.

6. Scammers will often use untraceable email addresses originating from free web-based services. Ask the customer to provide an ISP or domain-based email address that can be traced to their location.

7. Use the Address Verification Service (provided by most payment processors) which ensures the information provided by a customer matches the information the bank that issued the card has. Many payment gateways also have a variety of other fraud prevention tools you can use to minimize your risk.

8. When in doubt, call the customer and request the customer fax a copy of the driver’s license or passport to authenticate their identity.

9. Make your anti-fraud policy clearly visible on your website and warn potential fraudsters that they will be pursued to the fullest extent of the law if the place fraudulent orders through your website.

10. You can also call the issuing bank prior to authorizing the order.

Darryl

Peter Kenny asked:




If you have ever shopped online, then you might know about some of the dangers associated with online purchasing and online credit card fraud. If you are not careful, you could end up being a victim of online fraud, which could leave you with a large bill to pay of items that you have not purchased. Here is some more information about the dangers of online credit card fraud and how to avoid them.

Why shop online?

If there are dangers to shopping online, then why do so many people do it? Well, the dangers of online fraud are only equal to those of any other type of transaction. Also, online shopping is often much cheaper and quicker than regular shopping, and consumers who want to find great deals without leaving their home are turning to online stores.

Use credit not debit

The first tip to help you avoid online fraud is to make sure you try and use a credit card to purchase goods rather than a debit card. This is because credit cards are much safer than debit cards and have far more security features. If someone were to get hold of your debit card details, you are unlikely to be protected. However, credit cards are usually covered by purchase protection, meaning that items you have not bought will be refunded to you.

Use HTTPS

When shopping online, it is important to make sure you only enter your card details over a secure connection. If you enter your details on a page that is not secured, it will be easy for fraudsters to get your details and use them to purchase items. To make sure the page is secure, check that the page address starts with https://. This means that the page is secure, and it is safe to use. If it does not start with this prefix, then do not enter your details.

Use trusted web sites

Although making sure the page is secure is important, you should try and make sure you only use tried and trusted web sites for purchasing online. Using small or unknown sites can lead to problems, whereas if you stick to large company sites that are used by many then you are more likely to stay safe. These large web sites have better security features in place, and are more likely to help you with any problems regarding unauthorised transactions.

Keep all details

If you make a purchase online, make sure that you print out all of the details of the order, such as the company name and address as well as an invoice number and the amount you have spent. If anything goes wrong then you will have some record of the transaction and be able to sort out the situation.

Computer protection

It is important to remember that as well as being safe online, you should make sure your computer itself is safe. The easiest way for a fraudster to get to your financial information is to hack into your computer. Make sure you have adequate anti-virus protection that is up-to-date and that you have firewall in place. This will help to stop fraudsters getting hold of your information, and keep your money safely where it belongs.

Carl

Peter Kenny asked:


If you have ever shopped online, then you might know about some of the dangers associated with online purchasing and online credit card fraud. If you are not careful, you could end up being a victim of online fraud, which could leave you with a large bill to pay of items that you have not purchased. Here is some more information about the dangers of online credit card fraud and how to avoid them.

Why shop online?

If there are dangers to shopping online, then why do so many people do it? Well, the dangers of online fraud are only equal to those of any other type of transaction. Also, online shopping is often much cheaper and quicker than regular shopping, and consumers who want to find great deals without leaving their home are turning to online stores.

Use credit not debit

The first tip to help you avoid online fraud is to make sure you try and use a credit card to purchase goods rather than a debit card. This is because credit cards are much safer than debit cards and have far more security features. If someone were to get hold of your debit card details, you are unlikely to be protected. However, credit cards are usually covered by purchase protection, meaning that items you have not bought will be refunded to you.

Use HTTPS

When shopping online, it is important to make sure you only enter your card details over a secure connection. If you enter your details on a page that is not secured, it will be easy for fraudsters to get your details and use them to purchase items. To make sure the page is secure, check that the page address starts with https://. This means that the page is secure, and it is safe to use. If it does not start with this prefix, then do not enter your details.

Use trusted web sites

Although making sure the page is secure is important, you should try and make sure you only use tried and trusted web sites for purchasing online. Using small or unknown sites can lead to problems, whereas if you stick to large company sites that are used by many then you are more likely to stay safe. These large web sites have better security features in place, and are more likely to help you with any problems regarding unauthorised transactions.

Keep all details

If you make a purchase online, make sure that you print out all of the details of the order, such as the company name and address as well as an invoice number and the amount you have spent. If anything goes wrong then you will have some record of the transaction and be able to sort out the situation.

Computer protection

It is important to remember that as well as being safe online, you should make sure your computer itself is safe. The easiest way for a fraudster to get to your financial information is to hack into your computer. Make sure you have adequate anti-virus protection that is up-to-date and that you have firewall in place. This will help to stop fraudsters getting hold of your information, and keep your money safely where it belongs.



JEREMY

sachin k asked:


someone has used my credit card details to do online purchase. guide me how do i handle the case

NATHANIEL