Things You Should Do After Credit Card Breach

Last Updated : June 9, 2016, 7:34 a.m.

Nowaday, new EMV credit cards, popularly known as chip or chip & pin are thoughtfully designed so as to significantly cut down the credit card frauds. Yes, these new kinds of credit cards are meticulously embedded with computer chips, hence are considered as fully secured or foolproof. Keeping this thing in mind, many expert criminals are now trying to focusing on online transactions so as to steal the information of the consumer, when consumers use online sites.

Yes, if it is difficult to steal the information from transaction at the register, thus criminals are majorly focusing on your online moves. Moreover, these  fraudsters can steal your credit card information, if you shop online. So, it’s better to be prepared in advance, and know what to do if your financial records are exposed in credit card breach?

Read this article further to know about the five crucial steps that you should take immediately once you know that your credit card has been breached.

It’s Better to Close the Compromised Account

After knowing that fraudsters have stolen the confidential information of your credit card, always remember to call your credit card provider first in order to close your account. With the help of doing so, the thieves won’t be able to misuse your card in future to make any additional fraudulent purchases.

Discourse the Fraudulent Purchases

It’s better to inform your bank about the fraudulent purchase, right after you came to know about any mislead on your card.  Once you have informed your bank about any fraudulent purchase, then it’s their turn to look into the matter. Moreover, your bank or lender will provide you one document in which you need to mention about the fraudulent purchase.

The bank will charge with a nominal fee to take your word. You just need to pay one amount when it comes to reporting the fraudulent issue in your bank.

Review Your Credit Card Statement Carefully

It’s always better to check your credit card statements on a regular basis. In fact, you should not only review your current statements, but cross-check your previous statements as well, just to know about any suspicious charge. You should be careful regarding your credit card as you don’t know from how long, the criminals have been using your credit card in order to do the unauthorized purchases.

Cross-check your older statements to know what purchases you had made in the past. Through this way you can easily know about the fraudulent activity on your account.

Alert Credit Bureaus

Whenever you find any fraudulent activity in your account, always inform the credit bureaus. Yes, in India it’s Credit Information Bureau Limited (CIBIL) who looks into the matter. Once you inform the credit bureau about any fraudulent purchase of yours, these bureaus will protect your card from any authorized charges in future.

Now they’ll take extra steps in order to ensure that if any activity has occured in your account, it’s actually you and not a fraudster.

Keep Yourself Updated

However, one thing that needs to be mentioned here is the fact that you might never know how the fraudsters accessed your account, but once you start educating yourself on a regular basis, you would be able to know the best possible  moves to prevent the future problems. You should be on your toes, when it comes to keeping your card secured. Try to read and gain knowledge about how to keep your card away from fraudsters.

Conclusion-

• Don’t open any suspicious email, message or link which says that your bank asks you to verify this information because these are usually scams.
• Shop with only trusted sites or legitimate retailers so as to keep your card protected with any sort of fraudulent purchase.
• Try to avoid those sites that don’t ask for three-digit security code because usually these sites are not good in terms of security.
• Do not share your confidential information with any stranger, until and unless you won’t find that person trustable.

Regularly check your account, monthly statements and every transaction activity.