Credit Cards Ranked by Security
A report released by Javelin Strategy & Research, a Pleasanton, Calif.-based financial services research firm rated credit card issuers using three criteria: prevention, detection and resolution.
The study ranked 25 credit cards from the top issuers nationwide, with the Bank of America’s Visa Platinum card coming out on top, receiving 69 out of a possible 80 points.
The American Express Blue credit card finished second with 66 points, followed by a tie for third place between the Discover Platinum Card and First National Bank Omaha’s Platinum Edition Visa Card at 64 points each.
The report also highlighted unsafe practices still being used by credit card issuers, including the reliance on a social security number as an authenticator, which I highlighted in an earlier post as leading to social security identity theft.
According to the study, 56% of the 25 card issuers surveyed continue to require full Social Security numbers to help identify customers.
The study also mentioned the lack of user-defined limits and/or prohibitions (UDLAPs) which allow consumers to limit how much and where their credit cards can be used.
Say you wanted to prevent the use of your card outside the United States, or limit total spending to $500 a day. Currently, only 24% of the surveyed credit cards allow you to do so.
The report did report some good news, noting that consumers appeared to be safer logging into accounts online, due to ramped-up security measures on most card issuer websites, and multifactor authentication.
Related Topics:
- Social Security Identity Theft
- Bank of America Offering Credit Cards without Social Security Numbers
- New Bill May Block Credit Cards for Illegals
- CVV Numbers and Credit Card Security Codes
- Always Use Credit Cards for Large (and Small) Purchases
Posted Under: Credit News