Retailers, and resellers, if you accept credit cards online, over the phone or by fax, are you adequately protecting yourself against fraudulent transactions? I don’t mean hackers stealing your data, I mean fraudsters and thieves using OTHER people’s stolen credit cards to buy stuff from you.
How do you know if a card is good, or if it’s stolen? Well, the best way is to have the person stand in front of you and show their ID, but we know that in CNP (card not present) transactions that this is impossible.
So, if you are taking credit cards in a CNP scenario, the best way to protect yourself is to require the full name, CVV and zip code from the credit card. If the fraudster failed to get all of that data when they stole the card number, then you can catch the transaction and your point of sale can decline it. If they did steal all that data, and they give you the correct information, then the card will go through.
But, that’s still fraud! Yes, yes it is, but you, as a merchant, have taken all reasonable and available steps to ensure that the card is being used in a legitimate way, so the card issuer and bank are less likely to issue a chargeback. It doesn’t mean you won’t ever process a fraudulent transaction, but it does mean you won’t lose the money and the merchandise when the fraud is discovered, or at least it provides some protection against that.
If you aren’t sure about how your POS system handles this, or you need help setting it up, please contact your reseller, your credit card processor, or your POS provider and get yourself protected.