Are Debit Cards Safe in the Age of Cybercrime? Here’s The Surprising Answer
As nearly half of all Americans have been hacked in their lifetime, they may not know it and might not feel safe online. If you’re one of those people wondering are debit cards safe, it’s hard to know whether or not you can trust your money with anyone online. In the age of cybercrime, it’s hard to know whether or not debit cards are safe and why.
Here are three reasons why they’re safe in the age of cybercrime.
1. They’re Federally Protected
One of the reasons that debit cards are safer than they credit cards have ever been is that they’re federally protected and backed up to a certain amount. Most accounts are protected by the FDIC up to amounts as high as $10,000. That means that if you’ve got less than $10,000 in your checking account or the account linked to your debit card, you’ll be fine.
While many people still fear shopping online, with the number of ways that they’ve been vetted and protected by federal banking regulations make it safe. There are security companies who use the latest in cutting edge technology to protect transactions. On top of that, there are ways that banks have insured their customers to protect assets if they let a nefarious actor into their customer accounts.
2. They Have Shorter Limits
In general, debit cards are subject to much shorter monetary limits than credit cards are. There are consumer credit cards that have limits that climb as high as $15,000, which drives people into serious debt. If those cards get hacked, the cardholders are in for a serious problem as their credit could be damaged for years to come.
Debit cards have several limits placed on them. One of the limits is how much money is in the account that the card is connected to. The other limits are standardized limitations put on most debit cards, limiting the number of transactions or dollar amounts allowed per day.
3. Fraud Protection is Everywhere
On top of those limits that financial institutions put on debit card transactions, there are fraud protection policies that are broadly in place. If you’ve been making purchases in Florida for the past 5 years and suddenly there are several transactions from New York City, you’ll get a call. This will be your financial institution confirming that you did, in fact, make the purchase that just went through.
Fraud protection is just one of the ways that both small businesses and consumers are protected from losing money or being hacked. Fraud protection gets someone to alert consumers that something is happening to their accounts ASAP. This is one of the major ways that debit cards are safer than ever.
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Still Wondering Are Debit Cards Safe?
If you’re not sure whether or not are debit cards safe today, then you need to learn about how your bank is protecting you. Banks are your first line of defense when you’re trying to keep yourself safe from the problems of hacking and fraud.
For ways to save on your everyday expenses and use your debit cards less, check out our latest guide for more information.