Debit cards and fraud

Debit card fraud accounted for 39% of fraud losses at financial institutions in 2024, according to a 2024 Federal Reserve survey. How do these transactions happen? Scammers use your debit card information to create duplicate cards even if the card is still in your possession. 

They obtain information by: 

• Installing card skimmers at poorly secured or monitored ATM machines 
• Impersonating a financial institution and getting the cardholder to provide the information 
• Creating fake websites for online purchases. 

Data breaches like the 2013 Target Data Breach and so many others expose millions of credit and debit card information that are then sold on the dark web. 

What can you do to prevent debit card fraud? 

1. Secure your card information. Do not share your card information freely. If you get a call asking for your card information and you did not initiate that call, consider that the caller might be a scammer. 
2. Carefully review online websites before entering your card information. If you are purchasing online, consider using a credit card instead of your debit card, as credit cards offer more protection and do not access your checking account. You are not out of the money while the transaction is disputed. 
3. Consider the security of an ATM before using it. ATMs at financial institutions generally are examined more frequently than ATMs at gas stations or public events. 
4. Use a digital wallet to make purchases. Transactions through your digital wallet will not share your card information. Instead, they use “tokenization” to share a unique code to make purchases. If the merchant has a data breach or isn’t who they appear to be, they won’t get your debit card information. 
5. Monitor your accounts. 
6. Regularly log in and check your transactions. \
7. Set up alerts in your online banking to tell you when transactions are happening. eAlerts appear under “Helpful Links” within the Everence Federal Credit Union online banking. 
8. Use card controls. Within your EFCU mobile app you can deactivate a debit or credit card when it isn’t being used. On the home screen, select “Manage my Cards.”  There, you can temporarily lock your card which prevents purchases but does not cancel the card. You can also set up activity alerts for the specific card. 
9. Notify us if you have unauthorized transactions immediately.