Credit Card Scams And How To Avoid Them

In August, 2004, the Federal Trade Commission issued their findings of a recent study, which showed that nearly 25 million adults were victims of fraud.

There are a lot of scams floating around the credit card industry and if you are not careful you could be the next victim. The manner is which these scams are conducted are alenty but more or less have some basic similarities. You could be a victim of fraud on two occasions. While signing up for a new card and while using your card, if someone gets hold of your credit card number.

There are many companies giving advertisements of giving instant credit in spite of you having a bad credit history. Credit repair scams offer to erase accurate negative information from your credit file so you can qualify for a credit card, auto loan, home mortgage, or a job. These scam artists never deliver! Another common scam is placing an ad to call a “900″ number service, for which you will be billed ($ 2 to $ 50) just for making the call, it may instruct you to give your name and address to receive a credit application, or it may give you a list of banks offering cards, or direct you to call another “900″ number at an additional charge to get more information. Many times you don’t receive the credit card. Another scam doing the rounds is you find out after signing for a new card that it can only be used to pay for orders from a specific store or catalog. The store or catalog, which is owned by the company that issued the credit card, may not even offer merchandise of interest to you and many a times are grossly overpriced.

The next risk factor is improper usage of cards. There are many fraudulent sites floating around the internet. If you perchance do online shopping on these sites , don’t be surprised if some unauthorized charge crops up on your bill. Another recent scam noticed was a caller calls you claiming to be from Credit Card Company. He asks if your credit card has been stolen. To make sure he asks for your credit card number and other details. NEVER do that!

Here are some tips which could be of some help from these credit card scams:

* Always take the terms and conditions of a credit card in writing. Ask for any secondary payments not listed in the advertisements. Beware of doing business through 1- 900 services.
* Use your common sense in all your business transactions in life, and that includes credit. Never give someone money without getting anything back in return. Never trust someone that you don’t know. Never get enticed into a deal that’s too good to be true.
* Never give your credit card number, social security number or personal details to anyone. Use only secured sites for online shopping.
* The FTC regularly updates the scams going in the credit card industry. If you feel doubtful in any situation or you think you are being tricked contact them immediately.