Credit card Readers Warning

[Bobocasey]

Just returned from a wonderful Med cruise. While in Rome someone was able to use a reader to get by cc number while it was in my purse. The card was NEVER out of my possession. Luckily my cc company shut the card down but we had to go through the hassle of getting emergency money set by the cc company to western union, they could have sent me an emergency card but since I didn't have a physical address because we were on a ship they so they couldn't send a card. I did have a another credit card by it charges a foreign conversion rate plus a huge fee for a cash advance. So just wanted to warn other look into the metal cc cases or perhaps I have hear wrapping your card in foil may work.

[dd likes to cruise]

Sorry this happened. Did you use the card at all? From mine, and my friends experiences, seems to happen more that some vendor copies the info when you use it somewhere.

 

Need to always travel with spares. Hubby and I always take 2 cards each and different ones. So total of 4 cards with us, along with ATM.

[TMLAalum]

Appreciate this warning! We have RDIF protectors but I must confess that I am not diligent about using them. Ours are thin paper with a special lining.

[Keith1010]

Thanks for the post.

 

It is a reminder to bring more then one credit card including multiple ones that do not have foreign transaction fees.

 

Keith

[LondonTowner]

My partner and I have three CCs with no oreign transaction fees. Plus our debit cards and another CC. So, hopefully we are covered.

 

 

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[MTJtraveller]

The typical US credit card is an EMV (Europay, MasterCard and Visa) card, a chip and signature card if you will. This card does not emit information except when it is physically put into a card reader where it communicates with the host, so it is impossible to have been compromised remotely.

 

The NFC (Near Field Communication) card is typically not issued here in the US. Sometimes it's called a "tap & go" card. This card can be read remotely. It generally has a logo on it indicating as such; US passports utilize NFC technology and should be properly secured.

 

It's always good to know which kind of card you are carrying with you and take proper precautions. But I would say the majority of US cards do not need any special remote protection. Just make sure each person in your party carries a different credit card in case one is compromised or lost.

[slidergirl]

Too late now for you, but you could have had the card sent to the address of the port agent of your next port.

 

Did you use that card to pay for anything? That is more likely where it was captured. Even if you "never left it out of your sight", there are machines that capture the information and hold if offline for the scammers. I actually had this happen to me with my old AMEX card at a restaurant in San Francisco (got a call from AMEX 2 weeks later asking if I had just made a trip to Beijing and bought a lot of stuff!) There is an old trick of having something attached to the ATM machine that no one notices. You put your card in, it captures data, you get your money and your card back.

 

Like someone else posted, unless you have a "tap and pay" or "wave and pay" card, it wasn't captured out of the air from your purse. A chip and PIN or chip and Sig card doesn't emit through the air...

[Donray]

Just returned from a wonderful Med cruise. While in Rome someone was able to use a reader to get by cc number while it was in my purse. The card was NEVER out of my possession. Luckily my cc company shut the card down but we had to go through the hassle of getting emergency money set by the cc company to western union, they could have sent me an emergency card but since I didn't have a physical address because we were on a ship they so they couldn't send a card. I did have a another credit card by it charges a foreign conversion rate plus a huge fee for a cash advance. So just wanted to warn other look into the metal cc cases or perhaps I have hear wrapping your card in foil may work.

 

What tap and go cards do you use? There are very few RFID cards. Most of the cards you need to insert in a machine. Visa PayWave, MasterCard PayPass, American Express ExpressPay and Discover Zip. These programs represent different forms of tap and go technology, and they all function the same way. Some local banks will also offer RFID credit cards, provided through one of the programs mentioned above.

 

Bet you not have a RFID credit card and no one read your card.

[Bobocasey]

I contacted the front desk of HAL and the credit card company contacted corporate offices in Seattle and they said the port agent probably wouldn't except it since they can't get most port agents to except items that are lost and found and then are shipped from the old port to the new port.

As for RFID protection I did have it in my purse where the card was kept. My credit card company said they were contacted by a merchant in Rome who had my number but the name didn't match. My card had a chip in it and I understand that the chip is suppose to make it harder to be read but somehow they did it. According to my cc company It seems this happens frequently in Europe.

[cruisemom42]

As for RFID protection I did have it in my purse where the card was kept. My credit card company said they were contacted by a merchant in Rome who had my number but the name didn't match. My card had a chip in it and I understand that the chip is suppose to make it harder to be read but somehow they did it. According to my cc company It seems this happens frequently in Europe.

 

As others have already said, your card was likely comprised when you used it to purchase something. It wasn't 'read' from your purse or wallet.

 

This happens everywhere, not just in Europe. A few years back the police busted a huge ring in my hometown that was stealing credit card info from patrons at various establishments. In fact, I bet that if you google "credit card fraud ring [city near you]" you'll find similar stories.

[MTJtraveller]

I contacted the front desk of HAL and the credit card company contacted corporate offices in Seattle and they said the port agent probably wouldn't except it since they can't get most port agents to except items that are lost and found and then are shipped from the old port to the new port.

As for RFID protection I did have it in my purse where the card was kept. My credit card company said they were contacted by a merchant in Rome who had my number but the name didn't match. My card had a chip in it and I understand that the chip is suppose to make it harder to be read but somehow they did it. According to my cc company It seems this happens frequently in Europe.

 

 

In Copenhagen just as we were making our way to the ship my husband had his wallet stollen. We had not yet "divided up our cards", consequently all our credit cards were compromised. Big lesson for us. We contacted Chase from the ship, Princess was VERY accommodating, and we arranged for our card to come to a port agent a few days away. Unfortunately the card was not there when we got there and it had to be cancelled as well. It was a royal mess and led to stress we didn't need. Fortunately our daughter had brought her card with her and we were able to utilize it throughout the trip though I think we paid foreign transaction fees. This experience made us much more aware of potential circumstances and how we could prevent them in the first place. I guess life is an adventure and that trip was quite the adventure! 😊

[CruiserBruce]

As others have said, the chance your card number was read in your purse and stolen is about nil. The signal doesn't carry far...inches at most, likely less than an inch, andnot through much. It didn't happen.

[LondonTowner]

I think all new CCs here in the UK are now contactless. It is certainly very popular and frequently used.

 

I've had ny CCs compromised in the past, both in U.K. And abroad. It's not a big deal, the CC sorts it out. That's why we take various cards on holiday with us, we don't want to be left high and dry.

 

 

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[GOLDENBONNY]

Just returned from a wonderful Med cruise. While in Rome someone was able to use a reader to get by cc number while it was in my purse. The card was NEVER out of my possession. Luckily my cc company shut the card down but we had to go through the hassle of getting emergency money set by the cc company to western union, they could have sent me an emergency card but since I didn't have a physical address because we were on a ship they so they couldn't send a card. I did have a another credit card by it charges a foreign conversion rate plus a huge fee for a cash advance. So just wanted to warn other look into the metal cc cases or perhaps I have hear wrapping your card in foil may work.

no one used a reader its impossible. your number just got stolen from time you used it or even before from your online purchases. that why I never go without at least 1000 $ in my pocket in cash.

[telebax51]

My CC # was stolen in Fort Lauderdale i only used my card once so curious as to how. I have a RFID neck pouch now and will put all my valuables in it wear it under my clothes

[Hlitner]

We just posted this on another thread, but will repeat it here. Very few US issued credit cards contain a RFID Chip. Most of our cards are Chip/Signature and a few are Chip/PIN.....but those do not generally have a RFID Chip. Personally we will not even accept a RFID card....as the technology is problamatic. A friend in the banking industry tells me that the next big trend will likely be Smart Phone based systems such as ApplePay. These systems are very secure. .

 

Hank

[buchman67]

Hank,

 

You may have just answered my question. I use Samsung Pay and was wondering if that or Apple Pay was how their CC was compromised.

 

Seems you are saying thats pretty secure?

 

Lisa

 

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