The chances of becoming a victim of identity theft cannot be prevented online, but you can minimise your chances by taking certain actions. It is a great idea to review your RBI credit card transactions. Consider credit monitoring services, subscribe to identity theft protection services, and register for card protection plantransaction alerts.
You should only shop on reputable, secure websites and avoid using public Wi-Fi when shopping online. Cybercriminals often spy on Wi-Fi networks, intercepting data between them. You could be at risk of these attacks if your computer is connected to a public network, which would allow hackers to access your confidential financial information, banking credentials, passwords to your accounts, and other sensitive information. When prompted, turn off two-factor authentication and opt not to save your credit card information.
The following will be told to you about credit card prevention:
- An ATM’s PIN should be covered.
- Making sure ATMs are not damaged or tampered with
- Immediately locking or cancelling a card when it goes missing.
Fraudulent credit card transactions: how to avoid them
With Bajaj Finserv Pocket Insurance, you can protect yourself against everyday risks and hazards that conventional insurance policies don’t cover. As a result of the affordability of these plans, they promise higher coverage than regular insurance policies, thus offering an added level of protection. Fraud activity perpetuated on your debit or credit card can take many forms, and there are also many ways to avoid them. Protecting yourself from fraud might be as easy as following these steps.
Stay up-to-date on the anti-virus software you have installed.
If you do a lot of banking or shopping online, ensuring your anti-virus software is updated at all times is one step towards credit card protection. This is because most of our financial activity is carried out online on smartphones or laptops. You need to make sure you have anti-virus software that is from a trusted brand and is a licensed version. Get anti-virus software recommendations from family and friends; there is plenty of fake anti-virus software or programs that impersonate the real ones to steal your details. It is worth investing in an anti-virus program that offers a paid version to protect your details.
Sites that seem suspicious should not be trusted.
Whenever you enter your card protection plan details on a website that isn’t labelled as ‘secure’, check the details given on the security certificate. There must be a small ‘lock’ icon or an ‘https://’ at the start of the URL. By adding the S, you are providing more security and reducing the chances of fraud. Avoid sites that do not allow you to use secure, reputed payment methods like PayPal. You can also determine the trustworthiness of a website by reading customer reviews online.
Strange messages should be taken with a grain of salt.
You may have heard of this already, but some phishers can dupe you into providing your information to fake companies, products, services or people that only look legitimate. Do not click on a link or give your details to an artificial-looking website or to sources given in an email or a text message asking for your details.
In the event that you receive a phone call asking for the same, disconnect that call immediately. If you are uncertain about these emails, text messages or phone calls, try contacting the official customer care number of that service. For instance, if a sender pretending to be your bank sends you these items, call your bank customer care to verify the same. It is best to avoid reading out your RBI credit card numbers loudly over the phone, especially when you aren’t expecting them.
Every statement should be reviewed as it is presented.
A good way to know if your RBI credit card has unauthorised usage is to read through the details printed on your monthly statement. In addition, it’s important to pay attention to your bank statements for anything suspicious – catching fraud activity before it takes place is the better way to secure yourself from further losses.
Be sure to use your entire credit report as well.
Checking your credit report can also tell you if someone has applied for a credit card using your name and other personal details or is accumulating debt quickly. To have the activity removed from your credit history, you should contact your credit issuers.
Important documents should not be thrown away.
How many times have you received financial statements or documents that you throw away unopened? Rethink this habit by opening those emails and then shredding the documents. This information can be accessed by fraudsters (although it is unlikely) and used to perpetuate credit card fraud. Whenever you decide to discard documents, such as government correspondence, personal documents, and bank correspondence, make sure they are disposed of properly.
Make sure your mailbox is locked.
It is also a good idea to lock your mailbox to be on the safe side. It prevents thieves from stealing your new/replacement credit card or even the printed statements, thereby preventing ‘card-not-received’ fraud. We just talked about throwing away some letters we just discussed, all to prevent fraudsters from accessing them.
