3 Tips on How to Avoid Holiday Credit Card Fraud

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With the holiday season just around the corner, we feel the need to once again reinforce the importance of not running up a large credit card tab during this period. But, at the same time, it’s also essential to keep your credit card information and personal data safe, so you can avoid falling victim to any type of fraud.

Credit card fraud, because this is what we’re going to talk about today, can take various shapes, starting with fake charges on your account or even somebody else opening new cards in your name. Considering this, we put together a shortlist with a few simple tips you can apply in order to stay away from any type of unpleasant situations this holiday season!

Always use strong passwords for your accounts

This goes for any accounts, not just credit cards: it will always be very difficult – even close to impossible – to hack an account with a strong and complex password, containing lower and uppercase letters, numbers, as well as special characters.

We strongly recommend using a password manager to generate suggestions and store them safely. By this, you will add a very thick layer of security over all your accounts!

Set up alerts for new purchases

Over the next weeks, you’ll probably make a lot of shopping and it might be a bit difficult to keep track of everything, including one or two fraudulent charges slipping through. Considering this, our recommendation is to set up email, text, or notification alerts for every new transaction, as long as your credit card issuer allows this.

The idea is simple: each time the card is used, you’ll be notified. If you spot something that looks out of place, you will be able to contact the issuer’s card fraud department in a few instants and report it, thus avoiding any kind of complications.

Don’t access your credit card using shady links

Sending emails or any kind of messages which are trying to steal your login credentials is done throughout the whole year by scammers. However, the holiday season can be the perfect occasion for them to try their luck more than usual.

There’s a high chance for you to receive messages that look like promotions from various stores or informing you that you’ve won something. And in order to claim your prize, everything you need to do is click a link and fill in your card details.

Don’t do it, at all costs. In fact, our recommendation is to access your credit card just through the issuer’s official app or website!

Staying safe during the holiday season doesn’t sound that difficult, isn’t it? After all, it just involves a bit of extra attention and taking some measures that you should take throughout the whole year, not just in this period.

A few minutes of your time to add some extra security to your credit card aren’t at all a big price to pay, considering that credit card fraud is something you don’t want at all!

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