The banks need to do more about on-line credit card fraud too. In February, I returned from a 30-day trip to Chile, to discover some $2,500 from across the US  had been charged to my CC. The bank's text alert system never worked. This same bank, also discontinued its vacation alert system. If it had been in place, it would have known I could not make those purchases if I was in Chile.

The worst part - charges were made with just the card number. The 3 digit security code on the back of the card was never requested nor used to verify the purchases. All of the charges were with companies I have never heard of nor dealt with. So much for card security! After some long phone conversations with card holder services, all of the illicit charges were refunded a month later

In summary, check you credit card statements very carefully. If you're an active card user, small charges of $20 or less can easily slip under your visual radar. They add up quickly!

Frederic in Montreal

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