Identity Theft on the Rise: Visa reports another Security Breach
If you are one of the millions of Americans who uses a credit card, be aware that identity theft is on the rise. According to visa another major credit card processing company has reported a security breach in its system. Visa is not saying who the credit card processing company is, however, it is reporting that a substantial amount of information was stolen. Furthermore, the breach does not only affect a particular brand of Visa credit cards. All brands have been subjected to the security breach. Officials are saying that only credit card numbers, PAN numbers and expiration dates were stolen. They have indicated that social security information and encrypted PIN information was not stolen.
Both Visa and MasterCard are in the process of identifying those banks whose credit cards were affected. Individuals should check over their statements carefully to make sure that there are not any unauthorized charges.
I know I am guilty of not scrutinizing my credit card statements very well. Today’s worldwide economic crisis has caused identity theft to be one of the most committed frauds in the United States. Thieves are very creative as to how they will steel information. Thieves will go so far as looking through dumpsters or find more sophisticated ways of stealing information through the Internet. Do not reply to suspicious emails. I have on more than one occasion received unwanted emails claiming to be from Bank of America, the IRS, and the latest one I got today claimed to be from JP Morgan/Chase. These emails claim that they need information to update your account. They will send you to an authentic looking website where you are supposed to fill out the form. Do not ever give these people information. First of all, large corporations and the Internal Revenue Service do not ever solicit information via email. Cyber thieves are looking for any method that they can to steel information such as bank account numbers, credit card numbers, social security information and even your state driver’s license information.
I recently wrote a blog entry about an Internet customer wanting to buy a large and expensive amount of goods from my online website. He was claiming to be a priest from Ghana, Africa making a purchase for his church. Although I was not surprised that a church would want to purchase my products, it did surprise me that he was wanting such large quantities, did not give a phone number and send me four different credit card numbers to make the purchase with. As soon as I tried to process the cards, they were declined. Furthermore, the address that he gave me for the billing address could be found on neither Map Quest nor Google maps. I knew that I was dealing with a thief and immediately called the credit card issuer.
If you feel that you are a victim of identity theft report it to your credit card issuer immediately. The Fair Credit Billing Act of 1975 protects us as consumers from these types of frauds. You have between 30 and 60 days to dispute the charge with your credit card issuer. More than likely, the card issuer will credit the account and investigate the charges. However, if you are looking to take a more pro-active role than a reactive one than I highly suggest that you click on our sponsor add below.
If you are one of the millions of Americans who uses a credit card, be aware that identity theft is on the rise. According to visa another major credit card processing company has reported a security breach in its system. Visa is not saying who the credit card processing company is, however, it is reporting that a substantial amount of information was stolen. Furthermore, the breach does not only affect a particular brand of Visa credit cards. All brands have been subjected to the security breach. Officials are saying that only credit card numbers, PAN numbers and expiration dates were stolen. They have indicated that social security information and encrypted PIN information was not stolen.
Both Visa and MasterCard are in the process of identifying those banks whose credit cards were affected. Individuals should check over their statements carefully to make sure that there are not any unauthorized charges.
I know I am guilty of not scrutinizing my credit card statements very well. Today’s worldwide economic crisis has caused identity theft to be one of the most committed frauds in the United States. Thieves are very creative as to how they will steel information. Thieves will go so far as looking through dumpsters or find more sophisticated ways of stealing information through the Internet. Do not reply to suspicious emails. I have on more than one occasion received unwanted emails claiming to be from Bank of America, the IRS, and the latest one I got today claimed to be from JP Morgan/Chase. These emails claim that they need information to update your account. They will send you to an authentic looking website where you are supposed to fill out the form. Do not ever give these people information. First of all, large corporations and the Internal Revenue Service do not ever solicit information via email. Cyber thieves are looking for any method that they can to steel information such as bank account numbers, credit card numbers, social security information and even your state driver’s license information.
I recently wrote a blog entry about an Internet customer wanting to buy a large and expensive amount of goods from my online website. He was claiming to be a priest from Ghana, Africa making a purchase for his church. Although I was not surprised that a church would want to purchase my products, it did surprise me that he was wanting such large quantities, did not give a phone number and send me four different credit card numbers to make the purchase with. As soon as I tried to process the cards, they were declined. Furthermore, the address that he gave me for the billing address could be found on neither Map Quest nor Google maps. I knew that I was dealing with a thief and immediately called the credit card issuer.
If you feel that you are a victim of identity theft report it to your credit card issuer immediately. The Fair Credit Billing Act of 1975 protects us as consumers from these types of frauds. You have between 30 and 60 days to dispute the charge with your credit card issuer. More than likely, the card issuer will credit the account and investigate the charges. However, if you are looking to take a more pro-active role than a reactive one than I highly suggest that you click on our sponsor add below.
Labels: Credit card processing companies, credit cards, Fair Credit Billing Act, identity theft prevention, identity theft protection, visa securty breach
Credit Card / Financial news blog post by Todd Holliday at 7:40 PM 