The possibility of credit card fraud constantly haunts credit card companies and merchants that accept card payments. The problem is graver for e-commerce website owners and mail order companies where the card is not physically present and there is no way of ensuring whether you are dealing with the lawful card holder. Retail store businesses, have machines to swipe cards and the customer is available during the transaction. Though this does not eliminate the risk of getting conned, it does lower it to some extent.
Credit and debit card fraud is the No.1 fear of Americans already weighed down by the global financial crisis. (Source: Unisys Security Index: United States, March 2009). According to the Javelin Strategy & Research, “Identity Fraud Survey Report,” February 2010, the number of U.S. identity theft victims rose 12% in 2009 and the annual fraud amount equaled $48 billion.
In some cases, bank issuing the card provides some insurance for a merchant’s loss if the business has precisely complied with all of the bank’s credit card processing specifications. Even then, the business is not clear of loss as it will still see some charge backs. Credit card processing services employ fraud security measures to prevent fraud but you must also do your own bit to minimize the risk of credit card fraud. Here are some tips:
Appraise orders for complete facts
Do not accept orders if all the mandatory values in the form are not filled by the buyer. An address authentication via the credit card processing service’s AVS (Address Verification System) service is helpful as most fraudulent transactions don’t pass this check.
Validate billing and shipping address
Be cautious of orders with dissimilar delivery and billing addresses. When a regular client does this as a norm, it isn’t worrying. In other cases, call the customer and confirm. It doesn’t cialis online buy take much time and saves you from potential hassles.
Confirm addresses with websites
You can check the addresses and phone numbers of clients using web phone directory websites such as whitepages.com, anywho.com, and others.
Be cautious of free email ids
Most credit or debit card fraudsters use free of cost email accounts like Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc. Though these email accounts are also popular with authentic clients,.
Record every detail of the sale
Store the IP address of clients when they are exploring your e-commerce website or placing orders. Also record the date and time of the visit, and phone conversation details if any. Add the caller ID and any other data to the order information. If you do get caught in a credit card fraud situation, the collected information will be very helpful.
Be wary of new customers placing orders of high value
If a new client places a large first order, exercise caution. If they also ask for overnight delivery services, you should call the client and make sure she actually placed the order.
Get the CVV number when placing the order
Your order form should ask buyers to enter the Card Verification Value (CVV) number that is printed on the back of credit cards. Your billing application should save this number and pass it to the credit card processor for validation. This reduces the possibility of fraud as criminals typically only have the credit card number to go with.
Caution and adherence to process do not eliminate credit card fraud but are definitely successful in reducing it. Follow the above mentioned recommendations to protect your business and your clients. Daljeet Sidhu is the author of this article.

