The #1 way to protect yourself from online credit card scammers

Saving money on way protect yourself from does not have to be complicated. We rounded up the essentials so you can spend less and skip the guesswork.

Key Takeaways

• Advertisement As online shopping grows in popularity, scammers are following the money and doing whatever they can to get their hands on you...
• consumers who shopped online in the past year have experienced payment fraud, representing nearly 80 million online shoppers.
• Even more alarming, many retailers say their level of fraud with online sales is on the rise.

Advertisement

As online shopping grows in popularity, scammers are following the money and doing whatever they can to get their hands on your credit card information. 

Read more: These are the worst store credit cards

Internet fraud: A growing problem 

According to the 2016 American Express Digital Payments Security Survey, 48% of U.S. consumers who shopped online in the past year have experienced payment fraud, representing nearly 80 million online shoppers.

Even more alarming, numerous retailers say their level of fraud with online sales is on the rise. Why? The Wall Street Journal reports that the increase may be the result of brick-and-mortar stores shifting to chip technology, which is more secure. So criminals are moving to the Internet, where it can be harder to verify whether a charge is valid.

The American Express study found that most shoppers are willing to take extra steps to improve security: entering a security code for their credit card, answering security questions and creating a one-time password. But the problem is that not all online retailers require additional measures when you use a payment card at the checkout. 

Clark’s take: Use this tip to protect yourself 

So what else can you do to reduce your chances of becoming a victim? Clark suggests only using one credit card for all of your online shopping and never use that credit card for anything else.

When you’re at a physical store, pay however you want, though Clark advises against using a debit card.

But every time you purchase something on the Internet, pay with your designated “online shopping card” and check your statement monthly to look for any suspicious activity.

There’s no way to 100% prevent online card fraud, but this tip will at least help you stay on top of it.

Read more: The one and only reason to have a ‘piece of trash’ debit card

Advertisement

Why debit cards are inferior to credit cards

Advertisement

Final Thoughts

Before you check out, double-check way protect yourself from against current offers and any coupons you can stack. Small habits like this add up to real savings over a year.

Originally published at clark.com.