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Credit Card Fraud – How Travelers Can Avoid It

There are several ways you can avoid being a victim of credit card fraud while traveling. The following are some handy tips that will keep your money safe – so you can enjoy your vacation to the utmost.

Be extra cautious in restaurants. Credit card receipts make it easy for fraudsters to obtain your personal credit card information. Unfortunately, many vendors print your full name, credit card number and the expiration date of the card on every receipt. This gives potential thieves the information they need to make expensive purchases on the Internet and on the phone. Restaurants can be the worst because they often make multiple copies of your receipt and leave them on the tray when it comes time to pay the bill.

For now there’s not much you can do about how restaurants handle your credit card number, but luckily, by January 1st, 2007 all cash registers will be required to hide the last 5 digits of your account number when printing the receipt on paper. Many states are trying to speed up the changes, but many businesses are reluctant to comply with the new regulations, as it costs money to upgrade their cash registers.

Some strides have been taken by the credit card companies themselves, however, as they are the ones who pay the most for credit card fraud. Visa and MasterCard, the biggies in the credit card business, are setting dates by which cash registers must truncate credit card numbers on printed receipts. If retailers want to continue accepting credit cards, they must follow the new regulations – or face a hefty $50,000 fine the first time; and they may refuse to do business with the offender if a second offense is committed.

Travelers also have to worry about thieves utilizing camera phones to covertly photograph their receipts. So what can you do to stay as safe as possible? Follow these few steps:

1. Review your bill and quickly hand your credit card to the server. Never leave it behind while you wait for the receipt – no matter how badly you have to go to the bathroom!
2. Look over your receipt for your credit card number and expiry date. If the expiry date is printed on the receipt scratch it out entirely. There is no good reason for that to be printed, as approval for your card has already been sent through the credit card company.
3. Finished signing the receipt? Waste no time – hand it directly back to the server so there is no opportunity for someone to pick it up.
4. Keep watch on the card itself. Unfortunately, many servers are the ones who do the scamming. Using a portable card reader, they run your card twice to obtain your information, which is then sold to identity-theft rings.
   Credit card companies rarely charge you for stolen cards (the maximum is usually $50) but dealing with a stolen credit card can be a hassle that follows you around for years. That’s why avoidance is the best thing you can do to keep your credit information confidential.

Vacationers are usually more liable to relax and forget to watch for credit card fraud – don’t let yourself become a victim. Identity theft is an issue you don’t want to have to deal with at a time when you’re supposed to be rejuvenating.

Credit cards are now the most popular way to make payments, especially if you’re traveling abroad. Global banking is now a reality as well, and it is difficult to find a place where an ATM is absent. As a result, currency exchanges and travelers checks are no longer the choice of travelers on the road.

But this convenience has also created a monster – credit card fraud, ATM card theft and identity theft have risen over the past few years. If you become a victim of credit card theft, your credit reputation can go through some troubled times, even if you sort out the problem right away.

Knowing how to protect your identity at restaurants is one thing, but avoiding such a crime as you move from place to place is also important. Here are some tips to help you protect your identity from thieves:

1. Carry one credit card with you at all times, in your purse or wallet. You may be tempted to bring more along, but it is extremely important to leave your extra cards behind. Also leave behind your Social Security Card, birth certificate, passport and any travel papers you might have – unless it is necessary.
2. Do not leave your purse, wallet, or bag unattended.
3. Do not fall prone to distraction tactics that are used by fraudsters to cause you to forget your personal belongings. If you look away this gives thieves the opportunity they need to make away with your stuff.
4. Limit the amount of credit cards you bring on a trip
5. Refrain from giving out credit card, bank, or Social Security information to anyone over the phone unless it is absolutely necessary and you know that the call is legitimate.
6. Don’t write down any of your personal information, such as PIN numbers. Instead, make an effort to memorize them, and be cautious when entering identification codes into bank machines.
7. If you are missing personal information and credit cards, don’t wait to notify law enforcement officials. Time is of the essence when it comes to credit card fraud.
8. Keep several copies of important phone numbers, including those of the credit card companies, in your luggage.
   
   Follow these tips and you will greatly reduce your risk of credit card fraud – so you won’t have to deal with problems during your vacation – and after.