Don't carry more cards than you need. If you know you won't visit a particular department store, leave that card at home. Record your account numbers and the telephone numbers for reporting lost or stolen cards. Keep the list in a safe place at home. Be sure you get your card back after every purchase.
Many people are in such a hurry during the holidays, they leave it behind.
But with other people's money. The holidays make the shift in crime more apparent. This is a seasonal business for retailers and a big season for crooks, too. Yet the amount lost in credit schemes, which include false credit applications and bad checks, is difficult for experts to determine. The crimes are sometimes referred to as identity theft.