The problem of credit card theft is becoming more and more common in China, and it has a long history abroad. What is the development trend of foreign credit card theft cases? What are the advanced experiences of foreign cardholders, banks and regulations in dealing with stolen brushes? In the last issue of the "Focus on Credit Card Stealing" series, we invited our reporters in Britain, the United States and Germany to take us to find out by combining interviews with our own experiences.
Britain:
Develop biotechnology
Identify consumer behavior
Lucy Nagling, press officer of the UK Anti-Financial Fraud Action Group, told reporters that financial fraud in the UK in 2015 caused a total loss of 755 million pounds, an increase of 26% over the previous year. Among them, the financial loss caused by stolen debit cards and credit cards or information leakage was 567 million pounds, an increase of 18% over the previous year. Nagling said that these increasing data show that Britain is facing severe pressure to crack down on financial fraud. In particular, the increasingly complex network attacks, Trojan horse implantation, data theft and other behaviors make financial fraud more difficult to prevent and combat.
According to the survey of the UK Anti-Financial Fraud Action Group, in 2015, there were mainly the following types of financial fraud in the UK. The first is to pretend to be a bank, a police officer, or a government public department, make a phone call or send a text message or email, and get the user’s bank card or credit card information. Its excuses usually include paying an emergency expenditure, refunding a certain fee, and upgrading an account. Different from the domestic bank card "password verification can be set for online or offline consumption", credit cards in the UK are generally used for direct credit card consumption or signature consumption. If you use a credit card or debit card through the Internet or telephone, there is still no password setting. Generally, you only need to provide the card number and the 3-digit number printed on the back of the card. Therefore, if the personal card number and the three digits on the back are leaked, it will be easily stolen by others.
When the reporter first came to Britain, he was repeatedly reminded by his friends that he must not easily tell others the bank card number and the three digits on the back. On weekdays, reporters also received many calls for payment, some from formal large enterprises, such as power companies; Others can’t confirm the authenticity of their identity. In this case, it is safer to refuse to pay by phone and log in to the official website to pay.
The second common type of fraud is stealing and copying bank card information. The timing of the attack is often when the cardholder operates at an ATM or POS machine, or swipes the card to shop.
The third common type of fraud is the increasing network attacks and thefts, which are often committed through links with Trojans and fake websites.
In the face of endless financial fraud tricks, British banks and relevant regulatory authorities are committed to studying and adopting newer and better preventive measures. According to reports, the security system adopted by the Bank of England in 2015 prevented about 70% of fraud. Some of these measures include: developing new security tools, especially biometrics, consumer behavior identification technology, etc. If the recent trading behavior of an account is quite different from usual, it will contact the customer in time for confirmation; Strengthen cooperation with government departments, financial regulatory agencies and other relevant units to jointly crack down on financial fraud and ensure timely communication of information and data; Use various methods to remind users to pay attention to cultivating account security awareness and prevent financial fraud.
Tony Black, senior investigator of the Credit Card Crime Investigation Team of the UK Anti-Financial Fraud Action Group, called on: "It is very important for users to remain vigilant. If you receive a phone call, text message or email asking for your personal information, please don’t reply easily. You must ensure that the other party is trustworthy, for example, you can verify it through the authorities. Otherwise, it is best to ignore it. "
In addition, the official websites of major banks in the UK have information to remind cardholders to use bank cards and credit cards safely, including: personal information related to accounts should not be disclosed to anyone; Be sure to pay attention to whether the website is safe when shopping online; Check the bank statement regularly, be aware of your own consumption, and notify the bank in time if you find any suspicious signs; Receipts, bills and invoices after swiping the card at ordinary times should be properly kept.
At present, all major banks in the UK have opened 24-hour customer service telephones. After discovering that the credit card has been stolen, as long as you call the bank, the account will be closed and the staff will check it and send a new card.
United States:
Spot check customer identity
Stealing brushes costs a lot.
Major banks in the United States have different preventive measures to prevent credit cards from being stolen in large quantities and continuously. Take the Bank of America credit card used by the reporter as an example. If the banking system detects abnormal consumption of the credit card, it will send a short message and temporarily freeze the credit card. Every time a reporter goes on a business trip in a foreign country and spends twice with a credit card, it will be temporarily frozen. The bank sends the latest consumption record through SMS, and the bank will lift the freeze after the cardholder confirms it.
There are also strict regulations on the use of credit cards in the United States, and it is not allowed to use other people’s credit cards to spend money, even for a family. Merchants will check the identity documents of consumers from time to time, and once they find that the identity of the cardholder is inconsistent with that shown on the credit card, they will refuse to accept the card.
If the cardholder reports the stolen credit card to the bank, the bank will freeze the card in time and send a new card to the cardholder, and the cardholder does not have to bear the loss. At the same time, the bank will ask the cardholder to call the police and find out the truth by checking the signature. Most banks buy credit card insurance, and the compensation for cardholders is ultimately borne by the insurance company, so there is no reason for banks not to protect the rights and interests of cardholders.
If the cardholder has any objection to the consumption, calls the bank and the bank trusts the customer, then the disputed amount will be returned to the cardholder first, and then communicated with the merchant. Of course, if it is finally determined that it is the fault of the cardholder, the cardholder will have to pay the full amount of consumption and even pay interest.
In the United States, stealing other people’s credit cards is a serious crime, and the punishment measures stipulated by each state are different, but they are generally more severe. In Virginia, where the reporter is located, the law stipulates that stealing someone else’s credit card can be fined up to $10,000 and imprisoned for 20 years. In the face of severe punishment measures, the cost of stealing other people’s credit cards is very high, and most people dare not easily break the law.
If the cardholder conceals his own consumption and maliciously deceives the bank, the cardholder will not only compensate and bear legal responsibility, but also record his behavior in the credit system. Once you have a bad credit record, all aspects such as applying for a credit card and buying insurance will be affected, which can be said to be difficult.
Germany:
The insurance mechanism is sound
Someone pays for the loss.
German credit cards have always adhered to the principle of "convenience for cardholders". Except for a small number of bus ticketing machines, you need to enter the PIN code, and most of the counter consumption can be done by signing. In some parking lot payment machines, the card is directly deducted without any verification after being inserted.
Although the use of credit cards in Germany does not require a password, and cashiers rarely check their signatures carefully, thieves are not "cold" about it. There are many cases where the wallet is stolen and the cash is lost, but the credit card is intact. The reporter has experienced it personally. German police once explained to reporters that no matter whether they are operating in machines or shopping malls, most of them are equipped with cameras nearby, which will definitely leave traces of the time and place of consumption, so thieves will not "take this big risk".
High convenience is always accompanied by high risks. Although thieves dare not steal credit cards in public places, cyber hackers can hide behind the screen and commit crimes. Since most credit cards in Germany don’t popularize SMS consumption reminder service, theoretically, as long as you know the cardholder’s name, card number, 3-digit security code on the back of the card and the expiration date, you can make any consumption online. This is not difficult for network hackers.
During the one and a half years in Germany, the reporter was forced to change three credit cards because of this kind of network theft. In the worst case, thousands of euros were stolen, and a large amount of money was spent in Shanghai, Dubai, Paris and other places within one day. Finally, the reporter learned that the card was stolen because the bank became suspicious and stopped the card and informed the reporter.
However, cardholders who have been stolen should not be too flustered. When the cardholder contacts the customer service of the credit card or goes directly to the bank counter to complain, the bank will ask the cardholder to explain the actual use of the credit card in person or in writing, and sometimes make a preliminary verification. After it is confirmed that the hacker forged the consumption record, the bank will ask the cardholder to fill in the compensation complaint form and send it back to the complaint acceptance center, which can generally eliminate the stolen payment on the next settlement date. As far as the reporter’s experience is concerned, it generally takes no more than three weeks from the bank accepting the complaint to eliminating the stolen debts, and there will be no stalemate or dispute between the bank and the cardholder. As long as it can be proved that the stolen brush is not caused by personal negligence such as losing the card, the cardholder will appeal successfully.
The reason why cardholders and banks can be so calm is related to the perfect credit card insurance mechanism. According to the staff of the German Savings Bank, banks will make huge investments in credit card insurance every year. With "all risks", the bank can claim compensation from the insurance company, that is, the stolen money will eventually be paid by the insurance company. The insurance company will further let its investigation team investigate and contact the police. In addition, Germany has a "lawyer’s insurance" that can pay the lawyer’s fees for prosecution and police investigation. The monthly cost is about tens of euros, and most people will buy it. Cardholders will generally cooperate with banks, report to the police and go through legal procedures to bring the real murderer to justice.
Despite this, the German police told reporters that most of the hackers are international criminals who operate remotely across borders and are often difficult to track down. This may be one reason why most Germans don’t like credit cards. (People’s Daily reporter in Britain Li Yingqi People’s Daily reporter in the United States Zhang Penghui People’s Daily reporter in Germany Feng Xuejun)