How Often Should You Check Credit Card Statements for Fraud?

[DonTom]

The cops said as long as we were reimbursed they weren't going to do anything about it. I inquired as to why they don't investigate and they said it wasn't a big enough crime.

"$12.5 billion in credit card fraud losses were reported in the United States in 2024, representing a 25% increase from the $10 billion reported in 2023. This figure includes both direct financial losses and the broader economic impact on merchants, who incur an average cost of $3.75 for every $1 of fraud. The rise in fraud is largely driven by card-not-present (CNP) fraud, which accounted for 65–74% of total card fraud in 2024 and involves remote attacks such as data breaches, phishing, and online account takeovers. "

 

[Larry N.]

35 years ago we sold our house, used the equity to pay off all our debt, and left us with zero balances on everything we owned, and owed and never used Credit Cards again. Without all those monthly payments and money lost in the amount we were paying in interest provided the opportunity to begin saving, instead of throwing money away!

That's odd- we've been using credit cards (other than gas station cards, which we used a lot before this time) since 1980, when we had to (long story), and have almost never paid interest on any of them- interest payments came with car loans or home mortgages (usually paid early), but not much else, and we, too, live very comfortably.

The problem with interest on credit cards only comes if you don't pay them off monthly. In fact, DW goes to great lengths (almost a hobby) to figure out which card to use, based on cash back percentage, when the payment is due and/or was just paid (gives the longest time 'til payment due with no interest), so it keeps me hopping, just to try to keep up with the latest "card to use" at the particular place (grocery, fuel, restaurant, etc.). For example, if our Master Card is giving 5% cashback on restaurant purchases this month, that's the one we use when we go out to eat. If it's gasoline, then.....

If we had to pay extra for every use of the cards it would be different, but we have to pay the price anyhow, so why not take advantage of the savings by keeping money in the bank (small interest received by us) for a little longer -- over the years it adds up.

 

[jymbee]

If we don't have the money in the account.... we don't buy it.

Whoa! That's positively un-American!

 

[UTTransplant]

A Passkey is something like a fingerprint or face recognition that works on a device as a secondary authentication. Adds an additional layer of security without the hassle of sending an authentication message or email.

I'm retired now ... living quite well. Wonder how I did it? Tip: It did not happen by paying interest on Credit Cards! Selling that house was the best INVESTMENT I ever made.

I have not paid interest on a credit card in probably 20 years. It is not because I don’t have some; I do. It is because we have the discipline to pay off what we buy. I actually look at all my bank statements every 2-3 days. Once a week or so I pay them off. The only time we pay interest on anything is for something like a vehicle when the interest is significantly less than I am making on investments. For example, we have a truck loan at <3% while I am making significantly more than that on my various accounts. If the accounts start paying less than 3%, I will pay off the truck.

 

[DutchmenSport]

..... Not sure why you wouldn't use a no fee credit card and pay the balance off monthly. ...

It too easy to purchase more using a credit card than you are able to actually pay off at the end of the month. Then the balance rolls over a month and then zapped with interest. Or, if the monthly payment is late for whatever reason ... ZAP!

Basically, it's just too tempting to over extend your ability to actually pay off, getting one deeper and deeper in debt one month at a time, until the decision is made to make just "minimum payments" ... which will still result in more charges and the monthly payments is almost all interest, leaving high balances that are next to impossible to pay off.

I know ... been there, done that. That's why we don't use "True" credit cards any more.

 

[UTTransplant]

DutchmanSport, that is just a lack of discipline on your part, not the fault of the credit card. Good for you that you recognize it and have found a way to cope. I grew up in a time when I would literally have $0.05 in my checking account at the end of the month. It taught me to watch every penny, and to know exactly where my money was going at all times. Credit just wasn’t a possibility in those days since there would have been no way to pay off any loan/credit card. Now I have probably more money than I can spend in my lifetime due to a few good decisions and an awful lot more sheer luck. But the discipline stayed with me.

 

[Larry N.]

It too easy to purchase more using a credit card than you are able to actually pay off at the end of the month. Then the balance rolls over a month and then zapped with interest. Or, if the monthly payment is late for whatever reason ... ZAP!

OK, that's what helps you and that's fine, but don't extend that to everyone. As Pam says, some self-discipline takes care of the problem for many of us. I pretty much have to echo Pam's post above.

 

[John From Detroit]

OK, that's what helps you and that's fine, but don't extend that to everyone. As Pam says, some self-discipline takes care of the problem for many of us. I pretty much have to echo Pam's post above.

I have gotten in Credit Card trouble in the past Right now I have two Credit cards. paid the Capitol one off ... today in fact (it posted today) I think about $65.00 give or take less than 5.00

The Other one is going to cost me a tad more to pay off but that will happen this week.
Money I got. I use the card because they give me some back from time to time.

 

[jymbee]

We left home a couple months ago with about a hundred bucks cash in my pocket. Probably still have around 80 of that left. We use CCards to pay for everything from campground fees to groceries to restaurants (even drive throughs), to repairs, etc. etc.

Yes the kind of fraud I posted originally can be a pain at times, but's pretty rare and more than worth it to us for the cash back the cards pay. Don't really see any reason to pay cash for anything these days.

Last I checked our rewards balance was over one hundred bucks.

 

[triplethreat]

A Passkey is something like a fingerprint or face recognition that works on a device as a secondary authentication. Adds an additional layer of security without the hassle of sending an authentication message or email.

That description is not really correct. Passkeys take the place of using a password period. I'll give you an example. I have a password manager and it also stores Passkeys, if I choose to store them there instead of maybe on my phone. I also use Windows Hello and I have a fingerprint scanner on my computer. So all I need to do is log into my password manager using the fingerprint scanner. Then I go to let's say Lowes...or home depot, or Amazon or wherever I have chosen to sign in using a passkey (if Passkeys are available on their system). The password manager has a field that let's you put in the site's web address and I click on that. When that page loads, I click on the user I.D. section and the password manager auto fills the user I.D. It knows there is a passkey available for me to use and I select sign in with a Passkey, which it does. In a second or so, I am now logged into my Home Depot or Lowes or whatever site I'm wanting be. My password is never asked for because my sign in is with a passkey.

Passkeys work by the store or business having one part of the passkey in their system, but the other half is in my password manager. If the store's system sees my encrypted passkey come in, it knows that it's me and signs me in. On top of that, I have a password for access to the password manager, which I have set in the setting to require me to log in with my password every two weeks. Within that two week period, I can just use my fingerprint reader, until that two week time period is up again. It also requires password entry if you reboot your computer, no matter if the two weeks are up are not. My password for entry into the password manager is over 30 characters long, so it's probably not going to be guessed or brute forced anytime soon. And, on top of all of that, there is a 56 character secret code stored in the computer that has to be there, in addition to me being able to log in with my password or my fingerprint. If that code was missing and I told someone my password, they still could not access my password manager.

The point of all this long-winded post is that passkeys are almost impossible to hack....even if there is a data breach at the business that has one half of the passkey of mine, because I have the other half stored in the password manager and they sure aren't going to access that. And yes, everything involved is highly encrypted.

 

[Derby6]

I use CC’s to get miles. (Alaska airlines). Wife has card and I got business card last year. No interest as we pay off monthly.
As someone already mentioned debit card I feared fraud. CC safer.
Still a BIG CASH guy where I can. Definitely tips but small fast food, convient store, or general purchases I still use cash.

 

[triplethreat]

I found this online today and it's a little write up about Passkeys if anyone is interested....

Secure?​

Passkeys represent a fundamental improvement in security over traditional password-based authentication. Passkeys leverage advanced cryptographic techniques and modern authentication frameworks, providing several key advantages:

--> Phishing Resistance: Passkeys use public-key cryptography, This means two keys are created: one private and one public. The private key stays on your device and is never shared with anyone, making it resistant to phishing attacks. The public key is shared with the service.

--> No Password Reuse: Since passkeys are unique for each service, there's no risk of password reuse across different sites, a common issue with traditional passwords that can cause multiple account breaches using the same stolen credentials.

--> No Central Password Storage: Service providers do not store passwords, only public keys, which are useless without the private keys. This means that even if a service provider's database is breached, attackers cannot obtain user credentials.

--> Local Authentication: Authentication is performed locally on the user's device, significantly reducing the risk of credential interception during transmission.

--> Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Passkeys can serve as a form of multi-factor authentication by combining something the user has (the device that stores the private key) with something the user is (biometrics) or something the user knows (a PIN).

 

[DonTom]

Passkeys represent a fundamental improvement in security over traditional password-based authentication.

I received my fingerprint USB passkey thingy today, which I ordered for here when I was in Bakersfield, CA last week.

I just set it up on Amazon, E-Bay and VA Healthnet. I like it a lot because now I do not have to get my cellphone out of the car for the verification BS--except for the many sites that cannot yet use a passkey, mostly credit cards and banks, which seems a bit dumb to me.

Mine on the WalMart site says it is not recognized after being set up there. I think that site perhaps only works with stupid Smartphones which I do not like to use for anything until I have no choice. Walmart.com won't work under my Windows 11 with any web browser I tried. Have you tried yours on the Walmart site with a REAL computer (such as Windows 11 as I am using)?

And it should be used for more, IMO. I said years ago that a fingerprint is better way than stupid credit cards. All online transactions should require it these days and a credit cards should not even be necessary. I assume it will change to that in a few years now that passkeys are getting common. I assume they will soon only cost a few bucks, but for now after the taxes and other charges, they cost just a bit more than a hundred bucks.

-Don- Auburn, CA

 

[triplethreat]

I received my fingerprint USB passkey thingy today, which I ordered for here when I was in Bakersfield, CA last week.

I just set it up on Amazon, E-Bay and VA Healthnet. I like it a lot because now I do not have to get my cellphone out of the car for the verification BS--except for the many sites that cannot yet use a passkey, mostly credit cards and banks, which seems a bit dumb to me.

Mine on the WalMart site says it is not recognized after being set up there. I think that site perhaps only works with stupid Smartphones which I do not like to use for anything until I have no choice. Walmart.com won't work under my Windows 11 with any web browser I tried. Have you tried yours on the Walmart site with a REAL computer (such as Windows 11 as I am using)?

And it should be used for more, IMO. I said years ago that a fingerprint is better way than stupid credit cards. All online transactions should require it these days and a credit cards should not even be necessary. I assume it will change to that in a few years now that passkeys are getting common. I assume they will soon only cost a few bucks, but for now after the taxes and other charges, they cost just a bit more than a hundred bucks.

-Don- Auburn, CA

Don......We are talking about two similar, but different things here. You just received your USB fingerprint key and those devices actually store the 2FA credentials on the device itself (hardware). Passkeys, are a digital object that can be stored on a smartphone, tablet, Password manager (I used the same manager on my home desktop, laptop, and smart phone). While the physical device like you have is probably a bit safer than the traditional Passkeys, there is also risk with losing it, damaging it, etc. Having a secure password manager, like 1Password, which can and does store Passkeys, I never have to worry about being able to pull up my passwords or passkeys because I can access them on any of those three items.

Your comment about banks and credit card companies (many of them) not being able to use passkeys, is exactly what I was referring to in my first post......it's just ludicrous.....beyond belief....epic stupidity...that most of them don't. I guess they make so much money with their services, that they just don't care about losses that you, me, anyone else might suffer as a result of that lag in keeping up with secure technology.

I have passkey entry available for my Walmart acct, and after you posted above, I opened my Password manager, went to Walmart.com and signed in using my Passkey that I set up there. I'm on a Win11 machine and mostly using Edge Browser, but it also works using the Chrome browser. And as a side note, I cannot log into Facebook with a Passkey, unless I use my Smartphone. FB is allegedly working on their system to update it to accept Passkeys from things other than just smartphones.....at least that is what I understand.

 

[DonTom]

While the physical device like you have is probably a bit safer than the traditional Passkeys, there is also risk with losing it, damaging it, etc.



I have passkey entry available for my

I will now try FaceBook, I have not yet tried to set it up there.

Now that I tried, FB says:

"Create a passkey on Facebook​

This feature may not be available to you yet."

.At Walmart.com, when I touch my USB key, I get the green light only with the correct finger, but that Walmart then returns the message "This Passkey doesn't look familiar--try a different passkey".

There is no risk in losing the fingerprint thingy, I just use my PIN number and the old way with the 2FA. IOW, for now, it doesn't make anything safer, just easier, than them sending me an email or them sending a code to my Smartphone.

-Don- Auburn, CA

 

[triplethreat]

I will now try FaceBook, I have not yet tried to set it up there.

Now that I tried, FB says:

"Create a passkey on Facebook​

This feature may not be available to you yet."

.At Walmart.com, when I touch my USB key, I get the green light only with the correct finger, but that Walmart then returns the message "This Passkey doesn't look familiar--try a different passkey".

There is no risk in losing the fingerprint thingy, I just use my PIN number and the old way with the 2FA. IOW, for now, it doesn't make anything safer, just easier, than them sending me an email or them sending a code to my Smartphone.

-Don- Auburn, CA

Regarding the Walmart thing. Many/most sites that allow the use of Passkeys will require that you log in the traditional way first. Once that is done, then the Passkey becomes available. And as far as FB, I can log in using a Passkey.....but only when I do it on my phone........which I almost NEVER do for FB. It is always (99.9% of the time) done on my desktop or laptop if I'm travelling.

I also have Passkey access for places like Home Depot, Lowes, Best Buy, Paypal, Soc. Sec. and others. A quick internet search will bring up a list of places that use Passkeys

Passkeys.directory

A community-driven index of websites, apps, and services that offer signing in with passkeys.

passkeys.directory

 

[DonTom]

Many/most sites that allow the use of Passkeys will require that you log in the traditional way first. Once that is done, then the Passkey becomes available.

Yes, I realize that. Still doesn't work, but it doesn't make any difference as WalMart is very easy to log into without the 2FA anyway. Perhaps that is why. I will later try to log in from a different computer ands see what happens.

-Don- Auburn, CA

 

[jlhog]

I only have one credit card. I "freeze" that unless I really need it. Then after my purchase I freeze it again.

 

[DonTom]

I only have one credit card. I "freeze" that unless I really need it. Then after my purchase I freeze it again.

Freezing a credit card does not affect:

• Recurring payments such as subscriptions, monthly bills, or automatic payments.
• Digital wallet transactions (e.g., Apple Pay, Google Pay) where the card is on file.
• Offline authorizations, like purchases made on airlines or hotels.
• Delayed or pending transactions that are already authorized.
• Interest charges, fees, or credit line usage on existing balances.
• Your account’s credit score or credit history, as long as you continue making on-time payments.

Note: A credit card freeze only blocks new purchases and cash advances. Your account remains active, and existing charges and financial obligations are unaffected.

 

[RayIN]

What would a person do if their fingerprint, facial recognition, were to be hacked and stolen? How would one recover?
I intentionally made it hard for anyone else to use my computer to access my banking and CC websites. Every time my browser is closed it erases all cookies. This means every time I log-in I must complete the 2 factor authentication. Although time-consuming, 2FA is a very good thing to protect my money online. None of my passwords are comprehensible, as they are at least 12-digit random numbers,letters, symbols; 2FA increases log-in security by a huge amount.