Credit and debit card fraud has become so rampant, the safeguards put in place to stop it is starting to impact cardholders themselves.
Some banks now require you to disclose travel plans or risk having your card shutoff when buying souvenirs at Disney. What's meant to protect you can quickly become a nuisance.
“With such a great amount of credit card and debit card fraud it is very common for transactions out of the geographical area or out of the normal behavior pattern of purchasing to be declined,” says John Heasley, executive vice president and general counsel for the Texas Bankers Association.
“There are programs and algorithms that usually operate when there's something out of your behavior pattern,” he says. “I get certain alerts, I've had three of these and had to change cards in the last year, where something would be out of my normal pattern of purchasing or stores.”
Heasley suggests setting up text or email alerts to either approve or decline purchases. “Just be highly aware of where you're using your cards and make sure your information stays private as you possibly can.”
Forbes reports U.S. card fraud losses could exceed $12 billion by 2020.