Quesnel RCMP say over the past several weeks, they have received several calls of fraudulent transactions at businesses in Quesnel and surrounding communities.
Police have determined that often, merchants are allowing customers to manually enter in a credit or debit card number without the card being presented and confirmed by the business.
These fraudsters are also conducting purchases over the phone by reading out the credit/debit card number to the unsuspecting merchant.
These card numbers have been stolen, but due to the actual credit card not being stolen the unsuspecting victim does not realize they have been defrauded until the charges appear on their bank statements.
Quesnel RCMP would like to remind businesses to be vigilant when it comes to allowing “one off” purchases from being made in person or over the phone.
An easy fix for businesses is asking the customer to see the credit card and valid picture identification in person or for the expiry date and verification code on the back of the credit card over the phone.
If the verification code on the back of the card is incorrect or missing, or signature on the picture ID and the signature on the slip differ, then merchants should not allow the transaction to be completed.
Unfortunately, businesses may not be covered by their financial institutions if they don’t follow these simple rules, designed to protect both themselves and their customers.
It is recommended customers keep their credit and debit cards in a safe location and report any fraudulent activity to their financial institutions immediately.
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