It’s the holidays, which means the “Grinches” in the world are looking for ways to steal the joy out of your season. Before grabbing your checkbook, credit and/or debit cards for a shopping trip or before you log on to your favorite online store, take the steps to prevent financial fraud. Here are some tips to consider:

1. Don’t keep a stash of holiday cash ? keep your money in a bank account until you need it.
2. Never leave your holiday purchases in plain sight in your car or in a window in your home.
3. Never give out your checking account number, debit or credit card number over the phone unless you called them.
4. When making a purchase, keep an eye on your credit card during the entire transaction. Don’t let the cashier take it someplace where you can’t monitor the transaction. When the card is returned, place it immediately back in your wallet.
5. Never leave your wallet unattended.
6. Only carry with you the credit cards you plan to use on your shopping trip.
7. Sign the back of credit and debit cards.
8. Save your receipts.
9. Shop online with companies you know. Find out their return policies. Use a secure browser.
10. Keep a record of your account numbers and their expiration date. Keep the contact information of each card in a safe place. Review your statement each month and report any unauthorized transactions to the credit card company immediately.
11. If your credit or debit card is lost or stolen, report it immediately to the card or bank company.
12. When writing checks, use dark ink that cannot be erased and do not leave blank spaces in the payee or amount lines.
13. Notify your bank if you don’t receive your reorder of checks in the mail in a reasonable amount of time.
14. Shred or tear up cancelled checks, deposit slips and bank statements before discarding them.

Financial fraud costs consumers and financial institutions billions of dollars each year. Please take these precautions and don’t let yourself be robbed of your holiday enjoyment.

 

FOSTER BANK