Contactless Fraud ‘Now More Prevalent Than Cheque Scams’

Cash payments are certainly dwindling as more and more consumers find themselves attracted by the convenience of paying for goods and services by card – but this means that they may well be leaving themselves increasingly open to scams, unfortunately.

New figures from UK Finance show that contactless card fraud is now proving more problematic than cheque fraud, overtaking the latter in the first half of last year and hitting £5.6 million, the Daily Telegraph reports.

Speaking to the news source, head of ID and fraud decision strategy at Equifax UK Sarah Lewis said she is keen to see the £30 limit for contactless payments stay as it is and with both cash and cheques now on the wane, this kind of fraud is likely to increase.

Warning that no method of payment is without a risk of some kind, she went on to add: “Unfortunately with contactless you can download some illegal software and get it on your phone that can read your card details.”

Luckily, consumers are legally protected against card fraud to make sure they don’t lose out financially if they do find themselves a victim of this kind of crime… and credit and debit cards are still a very safe way to pay for items.

Remember that the police, card issuer and the bank will never phone to ask for your PIN number or your online banking password. It pays to remain vigilant and wary of any unsolicited emails, texts or calls that ask for financial information. If your suspicions are aroused, don’t call the number included in the message – wait five minutes and get in touch with your bank to see if they’ve messaged you.

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