Store Charge Card Theft

Looking for a Credit Card for Christmas Shopping? Before you submit a credit card application, first review the main points which will help you choose the right credit card for your needs.

What Charges You'll Make - If you're going to use the credit card mainly for booking airline reservations and hotels, it might be best for you to get a travel credit card that offers sky miles and hotel points or cashback. If this will be an emergency credit card only, then your main concern may be for a low interest rate credit card with low fees.

When You'll Repay Charges - Will you pay off credit card charges in full every month, or will you carry a balance month to month? If you're going to carry a balance, you want the lowest possible interest rate as well as a low introductory rate. But if you'll payoff balances in full every month, then interest rate really doesn't matter so no annual fee and/or a long grace period would be a bigger concern. If you're going to carry a balance, be concerned about how the finance charge is calculated. The most common method is the Average Daily Balance, which means that the daily balances are added together and then divided by the number of days in the billing cycle. Stay away from credit cards that compute the balance using two billing cycles, as this method costs more money in financing fees.

What Amount You'll Charge - If you're going to use the credit card for all your monthly expenses, then you need a card that has a high credit limit and a high cashback percentage.

More info about Interest Rates, Credit Limits, Incentives, Fees and Penalties

Interest Rates - The interest rate (Annual Percentage Rate) APR can either be a fixed rate or a variable rate that is tied to another financial indicator, most commonly the prime rate. With a fixed rate credit card you know what the interest rate will be every month, whereas a card with a variable rate can fluctuate. Of course, even the interest of a fixed rate card can change based on certain events, such as paying your credit card bill late, exceeding your limit, or simply because the credit card issuer decides to change it after providing you ample advance notice.

Credit Limit - This is the amount of money the credit card company will let you charge to the card. This amount varies depending upon the card offer and your credit history. Be sure to get a credit card with an ample limit, because getting close to your max can hurt your credit score. Just remember that you don't have to max out your limit just because it's available.

Incentives - To compete for and to gain customers, many credit card companies offer rewards. Even if you normally use cash, why not use your credit card and then use the cash to make the payment during the grace period? You still won't pay interest and meanwhile you'll rack-up rewards. A credit card with 5% cashback will earn you $5 for every $100 charged. If your total bills come to $2,000 per month, you'll earn a free $100 every month. Look for a rewards program that you'll use and which offers flexibility, such as cashback or travel.

Fees and Penalties - Compare common charges such as late fees, overlimit fees, balance transfers, cash advances, and for making payments by telephone. Regarding balance transfers, look for credit card offers with no transaction fees and zero percent interest for at least 12 months.

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Store Charge Card Theft

By Credit Federal | Published 08/12/2008

Recent store charge card number thefts and financial security tips to protect against identity theft and credit fraud.

Most states require companies to inform customers when their credit card data is stolen from stores, to give consumers a chance to protect themselves against fraud or identity theft. But when federal prosecutors disclosed last week that computer hackers had swiped more than 40 million credit card numbers from nine retailers in the biggest such heist ever, it was the first time that many shoppers had heard about it. Only four of the chains clearly alerted their customers to the breaches whereas Boston Market and Forever 21 say they never warned their customers because they never confirmed data had been stolen from them. There's suspicion that OfficeMax, Barnes & Noble and Sports Authority may have also withheld notice, as they have yet to state whether they made consumer disclosures. Computer searches of their Securities and Exchange Commission filings, Web sites, press releases and news archives turned up no evidence of any disclosures.

Many stores tout their charge cards as a safe way to shop, so it's important for them to not only improve security, but to also make speedy alerts to their customers whenever there is a breech.

Some stores did notify their customers promptly. Those were TJX, BJ's Wholesale Club, shoe retailer DSW and restaurant chain Dave & Buster's.

The Federal Trade Commission estimates that nearly $50 billion is lost annually as a result of identity theft and credit card fraud, with part of it absorbed by banks.

Dan Clements, the chief executive of Affinion Security Center's CardCops unit, which monitors Internet chat rooms for illegal trafficking of credit and debit cards, says many companies are reluctant to disclose breaches.

Learn more about how to protect and report identity theft and credit fraud.

Free Identity Theft Help
Identity Theft
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Identity Theft ID Patrol
ID Identity Theft Scams
Account Identity Theft
Scams Fraud Identity Theft Warning
Self-Help Identity Theft Protection
Identity Theft Scam Protection
Fight Identity Theft
Identity Theft and Fraud
Identity Theft Protection

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Store Charge Card Theft - by <a href=http://creditfederal.com>CreditFederal.com</a> <div style="text-align: left; font-family: Verdana;">Recent store charge card number thefts and financial security tips to protect against identity theft and credit fraud. Most states require companies to inform customers when their credit card data is stolen from stores, to give consumers a chance to protect themselves against fraud or identity theft. But when federal prosecutors disclosed last week that computer hackers had swiped more than 40 million credit card numbers from nine retailers in the biggest such heist ever, it was the first time that many shoppers had heard about it. Only four of the chains clearly alerted their customers to the breaches whereas Boston Market and Forever 21 say they never warned their customers because they never confirmed data had been stolen from them. There's suspicion that OfficeMax, Barnes & Noble and Sports Authority may have also withheld notice, as they have yet to state whether they made consumer disclosures. Computer searches of their Securities and Exchange Commission filings, Web sites, press releases and news archives turned up no evidence of any disclosures. Many stores tout their charge cards as a safe way to shop, so it's important for them to not only improve security, but to also make speedy alerts to their customers whenever there is a breech. Some stores did notify their customers promptly. Those were TJX, BJ's Wholesale Club, shoe retailer DSW and restaurant chain Dave & Buster's. The Federal Trade Commission estimates that nearly $50 billion is lost annually as a result of identity theft and credit card fraud, with part of it absorbed by banks. Dan Clements, the chief executive of Affinion Security Center's CardCops unit, which monitors Internet chat rooms for illegal trafficking of credit and debit cards, says many companies are reluctant to disclose breaches. Learn more about how to protect and report <a href="http://creditfederal.com/article/search?&Query=identity+theft&SearchType=1&Categories=a:1:%7Bi:0;s:1:%220%22;%7D&searchWhat=a:3:%7Bi:0;s:14:%22searchArticles%22;i:1;s:10:%22searchNews%22;i:2;s:11:%22searchBlogs%22;%7D&searchField=a:1:%7Bi:0;s:11:%22searchTitle%22;%7D%22">identity theft</a> and credit <a href="http://creditfederal.com/article/search?&Query=fraud&SearchType=1&Categories=a:1:%7Bi:0;s:1:%220%22;%7D&searchWhat=a:3:%7Bi:0;s:14:%22searchArticles%22;i:1;s:10:%22searchNews%22;i:2;s:11:%22searchBlogs%22;%7D&searchField=a:1:%7Bi:0;s:11:%22searchTitle%22;%7D%22">fraud</a>. <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/articles/533/1/Free-Identity-Theft-Help">Free Identity Theft Help</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/articles/130/1/Identity-Theft">Identity Theft</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/articles/507/1/Personal-Privacy-Identity-Theft-Protection">Personal Privacy Identity Theft Protection</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/articles/532/1/Identity-Theft-ID-Patrol">Identity Theft ID Patrol</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/articles/517/1/ID-Identity-Theft-Scams">ID Identity Theft Scams</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/articles/503/1/Account-Identity-Theft">Account Identity Theft</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/articles/467/1/Scams-Fraud-Identity-Theft-Warning">Scams Fraud Identity Theft Warning</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/articles/373/1/Self-Help-Identity-Theft-Protection">Self-Help Identity Theft Protection</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/articles/196/1/Identity-Theft-Scam-Protection">Identity Theft Scam Protection</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/articles/136/1/Fight-Identity-Theft">Fight Identity Theft</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/blogs/137/Identity-Theft-and-Fraud">Identity Theft and Fraud</a> <a style="font-family: Verdana;" href="http://creditfederal.com/article/blogs/103/Identity-Theft-Protection">Identity Theft Protection</a> </div> This article provided courtesy of <a href=http://creditfederal.com target=_new>www.CreditFederal.com</a>, a personal credit resource of good or bad credit credit cards and loans.

Credit Tip: Need a high limit for Christmas credit card charges? If you have bad credit, consider a personal loan by refinancing your mortgage. Even if you have cash to buy Christmas presents, we recommend using a prepaid card to make purchases because it's safer than carrying cash.