Watch your cards!

[miched]

In Miami last year after a nice lunch we paid the the bill,

When the receipt cam back to sign I did noticed the waiter

Slipping the Credit Card into his apron and going into

The back of the Restaurant, I really couldn't believe this,

Cancelled the card immediately, seems it was cloned

As when I got home the fraud dept of my Card company called

seems over 3 days 25 transactions all for just less than

$100 were attempted to put through on the card

 

When in Miami last Nov every server brought a hand held printer/card reader to the table whenever we used a credit card. Our card was scanned on the device and a receipt was printed out. The card never left our sight. We were told that was the law in Fl.

 

happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌞

[wwcruisers]

We always carry some cash, and simply pay for whatever we can with credit cards.

 

In all of our travels, we have never run out of cash or had any problems where we needed to get more cash.

 

Dina -- are you sure we're not related? :D

 

I feel exactly the same way -- I prepay everything I can, and then take cash for most everything else. :cool: Back in the old days, I used travelers' cheques -- but, even then it was sometimes hard to find establishments that would accept/cash them.

 

Not to go OT here, but I hope you're managing to get your Summit r/c'ers signed up for the Connections Party. Our r/c (the next cruise) is finally picking up -- and everyone is apparently having success at registering. Thanks to all your hard work, that is! :)

[phoenix_dream]

The only time we ever use ATM's to withdraw cash is at our bank. For everything else I would bring whatever cash I needed.

 

We also always bring two credit cards. Twice we have had our credit cards compromised while traveling. Whether one of them happened before or during our trip we were never sure, although ultimately both card numbers were attempted to be used at the very same city in the US so we suspect it happened before we left - or hate to say it but perhaps were stolen by someone at the Celebrity office as both times it was right before cruises. In one instance we were onboard a Celebrity ship and got called down to Guest Relations because our card was being refused (this was mid-cruise - proof that they do not wait until the end of the cruise to send charges through). They let us call our bank without charging us, and we found out they had seen suspicious charges so cancelled our account. As we were in transit, it was impossible to get another card sent to us. Thankfully we were traveling with our son who had another card we could put on our account. On the other occasion, it was discovered right before we left for our cruise. Always, always bring at least two cards for this reason.

[blindrid]

Someone who works for a bank should know that customers can get a debit card for a separate account where they expose themselves to no risk at all.

 

That is what we and others we know do.

We maintain a low balance travel account in addition to our regular bank accounts.

 

Before a trip, we transfer the amount of cash we anticipate we will need for the trip into that account, so we have it available for cash withdrawals at ATMs along the way as needed.

This way we never have to worry about carrying around large amounts of cash that may be lost or stolen.

 

Although our debit cards have never been compromised, we have no need for concern because even if someone were to wipe out the entire balance of that small account completely, we would lose nothing and our "real" bank accounts would not be affected at all.

 

 

Additionally, for those of us who are Americans it looks like it is only a matter of time before most banks and credit card companies in the USA will also be issuing the safer chip and pin cards that are already widely used in Europe and are already available at some places in the USA.

 

 

 

You miss my point, you are also at the mercy of that account being compromised, hold on the card, daily transaction limits established by your bank, etc.

 

Chip or no chip. I prefer credit cards. In the event of fraud, I would prefer a dispute versus a claim to get MY money back.

Edited February 21, 2015 by blindrid

[RocketMan275]

Someone who works for a bank should know that customers can get a debit card for a separate account where they expose themselves to no risk at all.

 

That is what we and others we know do.

We maintain a low balance travel account in addition to our regular bank accounts.

 

Before a trip, we transfer the amount of cash we anticipate we will need for the trip into that account, so we have it available for cash withdrawals at ATMs along the way as needed.

This way we never have to worry about carrying around large amounts of cash that may be lost or stolen.

 

Although our debit cards have never been compromised, we have no need for concern because even if someone were to wipe out the entire balance of that small account completely, we would lose nothing and our "real" bank accounts would not be affected at all.

 

 

Additionally, for those of us who are Americans it looks like it is only a matter of time before most banks and credit card companies in the USA will also be issuing the safer chip and pin cards that are already widely used in Europe and are already available at some places in the USA.

 

 

 

I've already received two of the new type cards. They are not chip and pin. They are chip and swipe. IOW, you can use them as a chip card or as a regular card. They're really no more secure than the existing cards. The banks don't want to go to full chip and pin since they would lose business. Not all merchants can use the fully featured chip and pin.

[Cruise Junky]

I've already received two of the new type cards. They are not chip and pin. They are chip and swipe. IOW, you can use them as a chip card or as a regular card. They're really no more secure than the existing cards. The banks don't want to go to full chip and pin since they would lose business. Not all merchants can use the fully featured chip and pin.

You can still swipe a chip and pin. All cards in Canada now are chip and pin and we have no issues using them in the US that only have swipe.

[sandancer]

Same for UK issued cards. At home or elsewhere in Europe almost always with a pin. In the U.S. a swipe. Never had a card refused so both work. Now we have contact less cards where you just touch the screen on the card reader with your card and bingo, you've paid. There is a limit of £20 per transaction and once you've used the system 4 times you must enter your PIN number to use it again. Hmmmm - the jury's out on that one for me though.

[RocketMan275]

You can still swipe a chip and pin. All cards in Canada now are chip and pin and we have no issues using them in the US that only have swipe.

 

Do you have a swipe strip on the back?

 

Technically, usually the cards issues in the US are chip and signature rather than chip and pin. I've two of them and neither company has issued a pin. One company said the PIN was only useful when making cash withdrawals at an ATM.

Edited February 21, 2015 by RocketMan275

[Cruise Junky]

Do you have a swipe strip on the back?

 

Technically, usually the cards issues in the US are chip and signature rather than chip and pin. I've two of them and neither company has issued a pin. One company said the PIN was only useful when making cash withdrawals at an ATM.

 

yes, all my chip and pin cards also have the black strip on the back

[cle-guy]

I've already received two of the new type cards. They are not chip and pin. They are chip and swipe. IOW, you can use them as a chip card or as a regular card. They're really no more secure than the existing cards. The banks don't want to go to full chip and pin since they would lose business. Not all merchants can use the fully featured chip and pin.

 

It's true the cards are chip and swipe, no PIN in the US.

 

However the big changer will be this October (I think its october) when VISA and MasterCard apply the hammer to merchants who accept their cards.

 

At that time, any merchant who does not "dip" the card but instead "swipes' or "hand-key's" a sales transaction, loses the ability to fight any disputed charge. It's up to the merchant to upgrade their processing equipment to take advantage of the new CHIP technology, or not upgrade and eat the costs associated with not doing so.

 

What VI and MC have told merchants is come October, if you accept any card that comes with a chip and fail to use the chip technology to run the card (i.e. too cheap to upgrade their processing umping to accept it), that anytime a customer disputes a charge with the merchant, if it was not authorized with a CHIP dip, the merchant has immediately lost the dispute, customer keeps the moment, VIMA take the loss from the merchants's deposits.

 

Banks are going to LOVE CHIP'ed cards come October, as they will no longer be "eating" all those disputes as they do today. Some disputes will be legitimate, and of course if a consumer still has acquired goods or services with no CHIP, the merchants will continue to have protection they do today. The "hammer" only applies when a chipped card is not verified using the chip technology. I'm not sure how the rules will work with Mail order and Phone order type transactions, but those already come at a slightly higher processing cost to the merchants versus physically swiped cards, so likely they will just again, increase the processing charges for those types of sales to merchants to cover the costs of lost disputes.

 

There are may credit card processing companies now offering free terminals that include CHIP acceptance, to get vendors to upgrade their systems at no cost. CHIP will flood the USA over the next 2 years. My cards from Chase and Barclay have already been all reissued with CHIP's.

Edited February 21, 2015 by cle-guy

[RocketMan275]

It's true the cards are chip and swipe, no PIN in the US.

 

However the big changer will be this October (I think its october) when VISA and MasterCard apply the hammer to merchants who accept their cards.

 

At that time, any merchant who does not "dip" the card but instead "swipes' or "hand-key's" a sales transaction, loses the ability to fight any disputed charge. It's up to the merchant to upgrade their processing equipment to take advantage of the new CHIP technology, or not upgrade and eat the costs associated with not doing so.

 

What VI and MC have told merchants is come October, if you accept any card that comes with a chip and fail to use the chip technology to run the card (i.e. too cheap to upgrade their processing umping to accept it), that anytime a customer disputes a charge with the merchant, if it was not authorized with a CHIP dip, the merchant has immediately lost the dispute, customer keeps the moment, VIMA take the loss from the merchants's deposits.

 

Banks are going to LOVE CHIP'ed cards come October, as they will no longer be "eating" all those disputes as they do today. Some disputes will be legitimate, and of course if a consumer still has acquired goods or services with no CHIP, the merchants will continue to have protection they do today. The "hammer" only applies when a chipped card is not verified using the chip technology. I'm not sure how the rules will work with Mail order and Phone order type transactions, but those already come at a slightly higher processing cost to the merchants versus physically swiped cards, so likely they will just again, increase the processing charges for those types of sales to merchants to cover the costs of lost disputes.

 

There are may credit card processing companies now offering free terminals that include CHIP acceptance, to get vendors to upgrade their systems at no cost. CHIP will flood the USA over the next 2 years. My cards from Chase and Barclay have already been all reissued with CHIP's.

 

As usual, you are absolutely correct. It is this October that the 'hammer' will fall.

 

Sams Club converted from Discover to Master Card last summer. The new MC have the chip but also the swipe strip. As of now, my Sams Club uses them as swipe cards but the cards and their terminals are chip enabled.

 

My AMEX was a part of a possible data breech at a TA a few weeks ago. AMEX issued me another card. Also, chip and swipe.

 

In neither case have these credit card companies issued PINs.

 

I wish this thread had been around a few weeks ago. My step son is leaving on his honeymoon cruise today. I discussed the debit card issues with him but he refused to get a credit card. He's a big Dave Ramsey guy and doesn't believe in credit cards. Based upon what I've read here, I would have suggested he get a new card linked to a small balance account for his cruise.

[lahlah57]

Our dependance on cards have now put us all at risk cause the criminals in or out of country are dealt the upper hand!!!!

My husband and I have now gotten into the habit of only traveling cash on hand! That has its risks too but alot less! Now all a savvy criminal has to do walk by you as your cards sit innocently in your pocket or purse and they have the device that can scan your card strip as they stand a foot from you!

Yes....cash on hand better with a "charge card" on hand wrapped in foil for emergencies. Kesp Debits at home!

We also exchange US dollars here at home for the other countries monies that we are visiting

Protect yourself and do not depend on cards! It also makes you alot more budget minded as you spend so to keep stupid purchases at bay! Afterall, do you really need that wood carving of a fertility goddess???? LOL!

[RocketMan275]

Our dependance on cards have now put us all at risk cause the criminals in or out of country are dealt the upper hand!!!!

My husband and I have now gotten into the habit of only traveling cash on hand! That has its risks too but alot less! Now all a savvy criminal has to do walk by you as your cards sit innocently in your pocket or purse and they have the device that can scan your card strip as they stand a foot from you!

Yes....cash on hand better with a "charge card" on hand wrapped in foil for emergencies. Kesp Debits at home!

We also exchange US dollars here at home for the other countries monies that we are visiting

Protect yourself and do not depend on cards! It also makes you alot more budget minded as you spend so to keep stupid purchases at bay! Afterall, do you really need that wood carving of a fertility goddess???? LOL!

 

You're confusing RFID cards with chip and pin cards. Entirely different technology. The chip and pin cards do not transmit but must be physically attach to the terminal to connect. The RFID cards only have to be waved at the terminal. Your common type (swipe) credit cards don't transmit either so no need to wrap them or chip and pin cards in tin foil. And, from what I've read, the RFID threat is vastly over-rated.

 

I've got a strong preference for cash too but I still see a usefulness in having credit cards.

Edited February 21, 2015 by RocketMan275

[pcur]

My bank advised me to open a separate travel checking account that is not tied to my other accounts. When I travel overseas and want to make sure I have extra cash if needed I'll put a certain amount in that account that I can access if needed.

 

We do the same thing. We have an online Schwab savings account that we put cash in for our trips. They reimburse ATM fees, so we can use any ATM anywhere in the world. We only use it for cash at banks, no purchases. I check online when we travel to see the charges that have gone through to make sure only our ATM withdrawals are showing. We've been using this method for travel cash since 2008. What I like is we can easily get local money.

 

We also have instant email alerts on our credit cards and our regular checking account debit card. We've had both credit cards and ATM cards compromised: once online, twice in restaurants, gas station twice (don't go there anymore), including twice while traveling. The instant alerts tell me if something fishy is going on, and I cancel the card immediately.

 

We always travel with a back-up credit and ATM card just in case. Also, we tell our banks where we are traveling so they will allow our purchases, but be on the alert for other charges elsewhere. Bad guys almost always charge online, or work with an accomplice elsewhere in the country/world.

[cle-guy]

You're confusing RFID cards with chip and pin cards. Entirely different technology. The chip and pin cards do not transmit but must be physically attach to the terminal to connect. The RFID cards only have to be waved at the terminal. And, from what I've read, the RFID threat is vastly over-rated.

 

I agree to this. My building uses RFID cards for all locks, even my exterior door.

 

I have to remove from my wallet my RFID card to have the door open, even if the card is first in the pouch.

 

Have there been some skimmed cards, sure, is it a problem with worrying over, no not at all, since we have a 100% guarantee from the card companies that we will not be billed for unauthorized use, no matter the case, so long as we use a credit (not Debit) card, we can feel free to write our address on the card and leave it laying at a gas station for someone else to use, and we will get our money back.

[lahlah57]

I still stand by cash and yes skimming cards with magnetic strips are not a small problem!

What a huge hassle when your cards are compromised! Use of debits on a trip is not smart:(

[pcur]

I still stand by cash and yes skimming cards with magnetic strips are not a small problem!

What a huge hassle when your cards are compromised! Use of debits on a trip is not smart:(

 

However, an ATM/debit card is the fastest, cheapest way to get local currency in a foreign country. Having a stand-alone account for this is more protection that no other accounts will be compromised (for fraudulent overdraft withdrawals, for instance). That's why we only use the stand-alone ATM/debit card at brick and mortar banks, not onesy terminals somewhere in town.

[lahlah57]

Brick and mortar banks....hmmm....indonesia has a Bank of America on every corner:rolleyes: Still stand by cash on hand!

[Iamcruzin]

With all of this fraudulent behavior running rampant I'm surprised that travelers checks are practically extinct. I still purchase them and cash them in on board as needed but when I go to the bank and ask for them I get a strange look from the teller.

[lahlah57]

Mike...you are right! We traveled with a couple and they brought traveler cheques and tried

to cash and the teller brought everyone over to look at such an odd looking peice of paper!

Lol!:D

[pcur]

Brick and mortar banks....hmmm....indonesia has a Bank of America on every corner:rolleyes: Still stand by cash on hand!

 

That's what I'm referring to: an ATM at a bank, not a convenience store, the terminal building, shopping center, etc.

 

We don't like to carry a lot of cash with us.

[AnchorsAweigh2011]

We’re normally pretty cautious with our credit and debit cards when we travel. We just got home from 3 weeks in Florida/cruising and have managed to have my visa card and my DHs debit card compromised on this past trip 

 

Why? Because we were lazy!

 

While in Cozumel, we decided to rent some scooters for the day. I usually preplan EVERYTHING, but this trip we were throwing caution to the wind!! (yeah, NEVER do that). We walked off the ship with some cash, visa card and a debit card. We did something we’ve never done before.... go up to a local vendor, with no reservation, and rent scooters. He didn’t take Visa and it turns out, I had $1 less than I needed to do the rental. Buddy says to other buddy “take these kind people to ATM”. Off I go. Used my DHs debit card in ATM, a couple of times, and it just didn’t want to work. Shrugged it off (NEVER do that!) and convinced operator to send us off, $1 short, with our scooters. That was the $750 mistake!

 

Once we got back from our scooter adventure, we purchased a couple of hats, using my visa, as we no longer had any cash on us.

 

Of note: Both vendors were right at the port.

 

When we got back to Fort Lauderdale, I used my visa to check us into the hotel (and it worked) and an hour later, I received the call from Visa security that my card was being used, in Boca Raton, and had just been declined due to inaccurate PIN. A number of purchases had already been made. Card cancelled immediately. Thankfully, we had my DHs card to get us through to the end of our trip.

 

Today (four days after returning home), I log into my banking site and notice multiple withdrawals done today, at banking machines. One, for $100, a quick call confirmed, was my DH. Then there were two others, for odd amounts...520.64 and 263.54. On the phone to the bank quickly confirmed these withdrawals were being done in Florida (hence the odd $ amounts – mine is a Canadian account). They immediately cancelled both our debit cards. Thankfully, we are protected from fraud so will get all this $ back.

 

We’re positive where my DHs debit card was compromised, as it was only ever used once on this trip and the scammers had the PIN. We’re not certain where my visa got hit, as they did not have the PIN.

 

Anyway, just wanted to share our experience. It’s easy to get complacent, but very important that we never do and that we stay diligent. Fortunately, we have simply been inconvenienced.

 

Safe travels everyone!

 

Thank you for sharing the information about your credit card and your husband's debit card. It's an excellent reminder that we should never be too careful when you travel.

[junetraveler2014]

In Miami last year after a nice lunch we paid the the bill,

When the receipt cam back to sign I did noticed the waiter

Slipping the Credit Card into his apron and going into

The back of the Restaurant, I really couldn't believe this,

Cancelled the card immediately, seems it was cloned

As when I got home the fraud dept of my Card company called

seems over 3 days 25 transactions all for just less than

$100 were attempted to put through on the card

This is what is done all the time. They steal the card, clone the card or just use the numbers off the cards. Then they put through a small amount to check money availability. If the transaction does go through the creeps go to town. We always use a card with protection. People do have to be very careful. In this day and age...why don't these thieves get prosecuted?:eek:

[cle-guy]

This is what is done all the time. They steal the card, clone the card or just use the numbers off the cards. Then they put through a small amount to check money availability. If the transaction does go through the creeps go to town. We always use a card with protection. People do have to be very careful. In this day and age...why don't these thieves get prosecuted?:eek:

 

I'm a merchant and accept cards for payments.

 

I've had a bad card come in, then realized it, and offered to provide MasterCard with the person's name and photograph from my security cameras.

 

They said they wound't be necessary, I asked why not catch him?

 

Their answer was it just takes so much manpower and time to handle all the cases, and police reports need filed and followed up on.

 

Credit card companies just charge the consumer higher interest rates and us merchants higher processing fees to ensure they are never out of hand. And they do a god job too of shoving such fraudulent activity back to the merchant to verify, so it's often the merchant gets the short stick. If we didn't have a signed sales slip, replied within the timelines required, failed to add in extra verification steps like ZIP code or CID if asked, any little forgotten dotted I or crossed T, we the merchant just lose the sale they take it from our account.

[varoo]

You miss my point, you are also at the mercy of that account being compromised, hold on the card, daily transaction limits established by your bank, etc.

 

Chip or no chip. I prefer credit cards. In the event of fraud, I would prefer a dispute versus a claim to get MY money back.

No, I did not miss your point at all.

No "mercy" is involved if the account is compromised because the bank insures up front that they will reimburse the entire amount lost in case that should happen.

We have peace of mind knowing that we are fully protected and have no risk of loss when using the debit card to withdraw cash.

 

So the only loss we risk is losing the cash after we withdraw it.

(Now if you are talking about using a debit card as a way to pay for purchases, then that is a different matter entirely and something we don't do.)

 

 

I totally agree with you about using credit cards to pay for purchases, but not as a way to obtain cash.