Credit Card #s

[Tony_S]

These might be and probably are dumb questions but, how safe really is it to use your credit card online these days? How are credit cards #s retrieved through the internet? Is there a safer way to use them on the internet?

[Spyder32]

It is somewhat safe, but not preferred. Thing's such as keylogger's which record your every keystroke and trojans which basically hand your PC on a plate to a person are some of the danger's of using your credit card online.

[NemorY]

Well, when you use your credit card, like amazon.com they can see your number, and since you give them permission to take the amount of money you purchased something for, they can take out more if you don't notice it. People also do hack websites and retrieve creadit card numbers (read Identity Theft: http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/fraud/idtheft.html ). Usually websites with encryption (bank sites etc, are more secure the regular sites when you use your credit card number), i wouldn't trust anybody with my number online since no system is secure enough and everything can be hacked into. But sites like amazon, or other "trusted" sites, i would trust with my number, my friend ordered over 4,000$ of goods over e-bay and nothing wrong has happened yet with his account.

[DeadAddict]

I buy stuff online without any problems I just buy stuff from sites that I know are legitimate and all well known web sites have a S in the Http:// after the P to show you that it is secure and what information you are sending is encrypted along with a lock in the bottom right hand corner.

[Soda_Popinsky]

There will always be a risk when you use your credit card ANYwhere. But when it comes to the internet, a few things you need to think about-

1. Who are you giving it to?
Make sure you aren't giving it to a phishing scam, or a untrustworthy company. Common sense is valuable here.

2. Where are you sending it from?
Who's computer are you using and do you trust it's integrity? Do you trust that it isn't infected with any keylogger or backdoor/virus that could steal your information?

3. Where will it go before it gets there?
Are you behind a proxy server? Do you trust your admins not to sniff the traffic for credit card numbers? People with access and privledge can view your actions on the internet if they can get in the line of traffic.

4. How will it get there?
Is your data encrypted? If you were wiretapped, would they be able to retrieve a plaintext CC number, or even know which packet contains it?

Words of advice, don't shop at internet cafe's, look for HTTPS:// in the url at a reputable site when you make your purchase, and keep your computer clean with antivirus and antispyware.

[moxnix]

Another safety measure you can use, is to get a credit card to be only used for online purhases. One with a very low credit limit.
You also need to watch the activity of this card very closely, and to be ready to notify the card company of any discripticies.

[er0k]

credit cards are fine as long as the site is security certified. Ive been ordering stuff on the net for over a year on an almost weekly basis and haven't had a problem. Just make sure the place you are ordering from isn't www.randomcompanysellingrandomproducts.com

[allenb1963]

You're only liable for the first 50 bucks in case of CC theft. The folks at my bank pretty well know my spending habits and call if they spot anything weird (it pays to know folks on the inside), plus they WILL NOT authorize any purchases that are not shipped to MY shipping addy unless I authorize it in writing. All in all a pretty safe system for me personally.

[TidaLphasE23]

A variety of academic papers have been published detailing attacks that defeat SSL and demolish many of the claims made for its capabilities have been published. These include:

www.cs.princeton.edu/sip/pub/spoofing.html
www.bau2.uibk.ac.at/matic/spoofing.htm
www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~pkilab/demos/spoofing/


Why would you take the risk using on-line banking and credit card transactions?
o.k. if you are security wise and know how it all works, but many people have had
large amounts of $ stolen from their accounts due to putting faith into sometimes
false security. What's wrong with the old money order by post, or better still a debit
card account that you deposit only that amount you need to purchase.

Credit card #s over the internet LOL, NOT ME.....

[mark_boyle2002]

www.randomcompanysellingrandomproducts.com

I am so registering that domain name.