First National Bank (FNB) has introduced Card Security Week to help all credit and debit card customers to keep their money secure while using their banking cards. This awareness campaign will run from 10 to 16 November 2003.
Card skimming is a global issue whereby credit or debit card details are illegally copied by fraudsters through a specially designed device used to lift critical card processing information from the magnetic stripe on the back of the card.
FNB continually advises customers not to let their cards out of their sight and ensure that they`re not distracted while transacting, which includes making purchases at a point of sale. It is also important that customers take extra care in situations where a PIN is required to ensure that no one else can view their secret number.
FNB is a joint member of SABRIC (South African Bankers Risk Intelligence Centre) and is working together with the industry to curb the issue of card skimming. FNB has active participation on various levels at SABRIC and this specific crime area is being dealt with by the Commercial Crime Steering Committee.
According to FNB Card CEO, Jan Kleynhans: "An average of 0.01% of FNB cardholders are affected by this scam monthly. FNB fully investigates each and every reported case via a specialised fraud investigation team that also has sophisticated detection systems that demonstrate unusual spend behaviour on FNB cards - this helps us stem losses to a great extent. For example, we would pick up a fraud case if a customer`s card is first used at a restaurant in Johannesburg and then two hours later another transaction occurs in Madrid, which is 50 000km away.
"In addition to the hard work and dedication of our card fraud unit, FNB`s inContact service also provides an ideal fraud prevention tool by notifying customers via SMS or e-mail of any transactions taking place on their FNB accounts.
"This allows for early detection of fraudulent transactions, which can then be reported immediately to the FNB Lost Card call centre for cancellation. FNB is the only one of the `big four` banks to offer such a system, where nearly 500 000 customers have already registered for this free service."
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