Avoiding Credit Card Fraud In The UK

If you live in the UK then you need to be aware of the risks involved in having a Chip and Pin credit card. It's been found that a research team at Cambridge University has discovered serious problems with the systems and fraudsters can even use your credit card without knowing your Pin number

Fake Card Device

Basically, if someone steals your credit card, they simply hook it up to a device that utilizes a fake card. The reason that it works is because there is a crossover so that the cardholder's signature is authorized and tricks the terminal into believing that the proper pin has been entered

This is a truly terrible flaw that should be taken seriously and when you consider that millions of people use these cards, a lot of people and businesses will be affected. Various cards were tested from different card issuers it they were all "cracked" using this system so research is urgently required in order to make these cards safe to use.

14% Could Be Victim Of Fraud

Despite the fact that a lot of fraud has been prevented utilizing Chip and Pin, it's still something that is worrying to everyone concerned. Roughly 14% of users feel that they have been affected by credit card fraud in some form or other. Of course, there are those who aren't careful with their pin because they actually write it down or generally aren't concerned about preventing anyone else from seeing them enter their pin.

One of the main ways that people fall victim is because they have been "shoulder surfed." So when you are entering your pin, make sure that you cover your hand to shield it from onlookers.

Generally you are going to be prevented from being out of pocket due to fraud because the card issuers will refund any money. However if you have been found to be acting negligently or fraudulently you might find yourself having to foot the bill. This is why you have to take preventative measures.

Even if you have done nothing wrong there are still cases where banks refuse to pay out because they claim that you must have given your Pin out to people.

New Credit Card Fraud Laws

As of November 2009, laws in Europe have made it a lot more difficult for banks to refuse to pay out after a fraudulent incident. The customer is effectively innocent until proven guilty and if there is no evidence or grounds for further investigation for wrong doing then the banks cannot withhold the money.

The banks also need to have evidence that the transaction was recorded correctly and that there were no technical errors. In April 2009 there was a case against Halifax where customer Alain Job was not able to prove that he was not at fault for the fraud committed against him.

Unfortunately if Job had the fraud committed against him today the matter would have been treated very differently. This is because the bank had destroyed vital evidence which would have meant that the court would have ruled in the favour of Job.