Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Bank card fraud hits N.B.

Summary

New Brunswick has recently been the site of frauds involving credit and debit cards. Many people have been informed of money being removed from their bank accounts, although it is not known how many people or how much money is involved. Earl Lyon was a victim who lost $200 and immediately reported his loss to his bank and the police. Once a bank is informed of a possible fraud, an investigation immediately begins. Lyon’s bank has agreed to reimburse the removed $200. The RCMP is currently warning people to monitor their bank account and to never give out credit or debit card information.

Connections

This article connects to the beginning portion of chapter 14.2, which is about credit cards. The book talks about the importance of credit cards in our society and how it can function with people using credit cards in place of cash. The benefits of using credit cards include making purchases on credit or deducting the ammount straight from the user’s bank account. The book however, never dicusses about the disadvantages of using credit cards. It would very easy for someone remove money from another person’s bank account if they were to obtain the credit card information of that person. The article states that the bank has agreed to compensate for the $200 loss, but banks may not be so generous in the future if money continues to get stolen.

Reflections

Although I am not an owner of a credit card, I find it unnerving how easily someone access someone else’s bank account with the right information. With that being said, I will have to be careful of how I handle my information once I obtain my credit card in the future. Even with the possibility of losing money, it is hard to ignore the benefits of these cards. Credit cards could very well replace bills and coins in the future.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/new-brunswick/story/2010/03/02/nb-debit-credit-card-fraud.html