Card fraud is when someone uses your debit or credit card details to make purchases you didn’t authorise. Some of the most common forms of card fraud include:
- Random card number generation (BIN attack)
- ATM skimming
- Counterfeit cards
- Malware
- Stolen mail
- Lost or stolen cards
- Giving your card details to third parties
How to protect yourself
- Memorise your Personal Identification Number (PIN), avoid using the same PIN for all your cards, and choose a PIN that’s hard to guess (so not your birthday or anything simple like 0000).
- Use digital wallet for transactions where possible, and set your notifications preferences to receive alerts for all transactions.
- Check your statements regularly or transaction activity through the Mobile App and call us if you notice any unusual activity.
- Always keep your cards in your sight, e.g. when paying in a restaurant, don’t let them take your card away.
- Keep track of when new and reissued cards should arrive, and call us if they don’t come on time.
- Ensure your mailbox is secure so that only you and the postal carrier can access it.
- Only shop on secure websites. Look for a small key or padlock symbol in your browser’s address bar. This sign indicates that only you and the merchant can view your payment information.
- Never give your card number to strangers or telemarketers who phone you. Only give your card number if you made the call.
- Never send payment or personal information via email. Most reputable merchant sites use encryption technologies that will protect your private data from being accessed by others as you conduct an online transaction.
How we will help protect your from card fraud
- Regularly monitor your accounts for unusual transactions
- Actively seek to confirm with you any transactions that appear to be unusual via phone or requesting confirmation of a transaction
- Take proactive measures to restrict access to the account if we detect unusual activity and we are unable to confirm the legitimacy of the transactions with you.
- If you suffer a loss as a result of a fraudulent transaction on your G&C Mutual Bank debit or credit card, we’ll credit your account with the amount of the loss, as long as you:
- didn’t contribute to the loss
- notified us promptly of the fraud
- Our cards have security microships that make it more difficult for card details to be fraudulently copied.
- Verified by Visa provides an extra level of protection for online purchases made through participating retailers
What to do if you if you don’t recognise a card transaction?
If there is a transaction on your debit or credit card that you don’t recognise or you believe your card may be compromised, before lodging a dispute you should:
- confirm the transaction wasn’t made by another cardholder on the account,
- search online if you don’t recognise the merchant name that appears on your statement, to see if they trade under a different name (sometimes the trading name can be different to the business or brand name),
- check the transaction against any purchase receipts you might have - sometimes the amount is different because of exchange rates on an international transaction, or a surcharge applied by the merchant
- confirm you haven’t given your card details to someone when subscribing to a free trial that may be finished
- check it’s not a purchase from a few days ago, as there can be delays between payment and the transaction appearing
- contact the merchant directly and try to resolve the issue. This is usually the fastest way to resolve a transaction dispute.
- get more details about the transaction by logging into your other payment gateways like PayPal, App Store, Google Play, Shopify or Uber.
In some cases, when you make a purchase using your debit or credit card, we can dispute a transaction for you from the merchant’s financial institution. This is called a chargeback. Usually, we can only do this after you’ve tried to resolve your dispute with the merchant first, and you were unsuccessful.
Please note that there are different time frames that apply to different types of transaction disputes, so when in doubt, let us know immediately by:
For extra control and security you can put a temporary lock on your debit or credit card through the Mobile App or we can permanently stop your card and order you a new one.
