Frequent Credit Card Fraud due to Card Skimming
Background
Credit Card Fraud is one of the biggest threats to business establishments today. Originally, credit cards simply carried raised numbers that were transferred to a carbon copy with a card-swiping machine. The merchant simply accepted any card presented. Spending limits and printed lists of lost/stolen cards were ineffective in preventing fraud and other financial losses. Merchants were required to telephone a transaction authorization center to get pre-approval of the transaction. The volume of telephone traffic grew too great, and more automated authorization systems allowed faster, easier, and verified transactions. Magnetic stripes on the backs of these payment cards started to appear and that allowed computers to be used at both ends of the call.
The raised letters and numbers on the plastic cards are now rarely used or even read. This then gave rise to “skimming” devices that could be used by some unscrupulous persons to electronically scan and save the information from many customers' cards. Techniques such as "skimming," in which criminals capture card information and personal-identification numbers, have existed for years, often on a small scale. A growing security concern with Skimming devices is the possible release of the user’s personal information or location to unauthorized parties. So, what is now needed is a way to increase the security of payment card use at merchant locations.
Problem Statement
Credit Card Fraud poses one of the greatest risks to businesses nowadays. As card business transactions increase, so too do frauds. According to the Jamaica Observer dated March 2010 “The National Commercial Bank (NCB) yesterday revealed that it lost more than J$100 million to credit card fraud last year, put merchants on guard against what it said was a rising problem”.
Most cases of counterfeit fraud involve skimming. The fraudulent activity on a card affects
References: List http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/NCB-puts-customers-on-credit-card-guard_7505969http://online.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703688704575621122308129984http://quotes.wsj.com/IT