Credit Card and Lack Security

About half of the UK residents are leaving themselves open to credit card and bank account fraud.  This is a result of lack security of the consumers.  A survey was conducted by the UK Consumer Association to show just how much we are leaving ourselves open for.

4000 individuals were surveyed regarding their credit card practices.  About half of those surveyed said that they use the same pin number for more than one card.  The research differs from an earlier study in the year that showed only a quarter of those surveyed used the same pin for all their credit card and debit cards.  It seems either the numbers are rising or those surveyed were a little behind in their security practices for their credit cards.

The study concludes that one in seven individuals have the same passwords and pins for all of their financial business.  They also write down the information either in a wallet or someplace in their home that it can be easily found.  Many of the consumers who shop online or use online services will use their mother’s maiden name for the answer to the security question.

There are still millions of UK residents that are taking the necessary precautions regarding their credit cards.  These individuals are hiding their pins from “shoulder surfers’ while standing at an ATM.  They are also checking their statements for incorrect transactions and shredding any financial information or personal information they are looking to throw in the trash.

A third of the individuals surveyed have actually had fraudulent use of their credit cards or bank accounts.  They did get most of the money back, but the process is long and disheartening.  The fact that the numbers are so low suggests that ID theft insurance is really not a necessity, but a very expensive addition to the monthly budget.

In fact the company completing the survey believes that a few common sense precautions may be all that is needed to protect against the rising credit card fraud industry.

This advice comes on the tail end of another tale in which a UK gang ring has been busted.  It seems that every month or twice a month in some cases we are hearing about another fraud ring that has been uncovered.  Most notably these rings are in the UK, Europe, and the rest of the world as a big international crime syndicate.

The latest in credit card fraud was a gang in Spain selling fraudulent credit cards to the UK and Ireland.  It is hard to understand how a few basic precautions can stop this, but their methods are fairly simple.  They hover at ATM’s, look through the trash, get in homes that are being sold, and they work in the stores you visit.

Fearing credit card fraud is not something you should do, but being aware of it and taking the steps to protect yourself is something you should be proactive about, according to the company who posted the recent survey.