BBC Inside Out - Credit card cloning
Recently I was contacted by my bank, that someone has been "testing" my card at gas stations around Houston - apparently credit card thieves will verify a card at the pump just to see if it's still valid. They've been doing that about 5 times/day for the last few days, with my card, at gas stations I don't even go to. This is an immediate red flag for them, so they had shut off my VISA entirely.
But, I still have my card, in my wallet. I'm sure of that, since it was just denied when I tried to pay for breakfast this morning.
It seems that "skimming" (or credit card cloning) is real and quite easy. Does anyone know of a card with a smart chip or other system that prevents this from happening, or at least makes it harder to do?
Chip and PIN is being used in Europe. It requires a PIN to be used, which matches a chip.
ReplyDeleteNot fool proof though - the machines have to be set up for it and older machines still accept the cards if they are cloned.