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Fraudulent Credit Card use in Australia - How Bad is it?

December 8th, 2006

* * * * 4 Stars

Credit Card Fraud Statistics

You’d be surprised how many people search Google for terms such as “how to fraud a credit card”. Conservatives would also be shocked to find out that you’re more likely to be scammed at a counter right infront of your eyes than in a secure online transaction.

That’s why I became even more surprised when I researched the amount of credit card fraud present in Australia.

Isn’t it great to know that there’s less fraudulent credit card activity in Australia? In Asia Pacific 0.0070% of fraudulent cheque and card transactions occured during 2005-06.

BRW has said “Australians are an honest lot with credit and debit cards as well as cheques. Only 3c in every $100 is spent fradulently compared with 9c in every $100 spent in the United Kingdom, the Australian Payments Clearing Association says. Of the 3.82 billion transactions, just 268 570 transactions were fradulent- although they still added up to a cool $ 142.6 million. The biggest dollar losses came from counterfeit cards.

The Asia-Pacific region overall has a lower rate of card fraud at US3c per $US100 against a global average of US7c per $US100, according to card issuer Visa.”

As consumers we can breathe a sigh of relief because it seems we have it safer than most countries around the world. This doesn’t mean that you should be complacent about credit card security.

Credit Card Fraud Protection

To avoid fraud, remember to:

Shred, burn, or drown any printed material with your credit card details. You don’t want a fraudster to do phone or online shopping with your details do you?
When shopping online, follow the 7 steps outlined by Stay Smart Online (http://www.staysmartonline.gov.au/smart_transacting_online).
Keep an eye on your credit card when using it for purchases. Go up to the counter at cafes / restaurants when you pay.
Cut up or shred old credit cards. You can also scratch the magnetic strip if that makes you feel good too.
Shred any pre-approved credit card applications you receive if you’re not going to accept the offer.

Don’t get lazy! As Aussies, we’re probably really good at protecting ourselves, so we just need to keep up our efforts against fraud.

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One Response

Fred Schebesta Says:
December 8th, 2006 at 12:10 pm
I had the fraud team from Westpac call me the other day for a big transaction I made. Lucky it was actually me buying a couch!!

I like that safe feeling from those transaction monitoring teams. But even with them I am sooo careful.

Fred Schebesta
http://www.OnlineMarketingSydney.com.au