Normally I would not do this, just use an article in it’s entirety, but I found this so interesting and valuable that I had to. I’m one of those people who uses PIN numbers that a skilled hacker/cracker could get with a little time and patience, so I’m always very interested in learning ways to protect myself. See, because I’m so forgetful, it has to be something that I can remember very easily, and if I can remember it easily, someone skilled with ulterior motives can guess it almost as easily. All those mnemonic devices don’t work for me for some reason; I forget the device just as quickly as I forget the PIN!
Anyway, here’s the article, hope someone finds it useful:
How to Keep Your Debit Card Number (PIN) Safe
The bank tells you to be careful about tearing up the PIN that they send you with a new card. But did you know that there are more things that you can do to protect your number and that you should be doing these things to ensure that nobody tries to use your account? Debit cards are very attractive to would-be thieves because immediate cash is always more desirable than goods on a credit card. Here are some additional, simple steps for you to take to protect your PIN (personal identification number).Steps
- Never share the PIN with anyone. It might be tempting to trust a friend or a family member with your PIN but it is not a good idea. Circumstances can change and sometimes, people perceive a need more greatly than maintaining your trust or worst still, a person you do trust might be placed in a compromising position with a third party and be obliged to reveal your PIN under harassment or threat. It is better not to put this to the test, ever.
- Never give out your PIN in response to e-mail or telephone requests. Phishing scams are unsolicited e-mails asking for bank account details, passwords and PINs. Delete them without a second thought and never respond to them.[1] Also, never provide your PIN over the telephone; there is never a need to do this and it will always be a fraudulent request. [2]
- Shield your PIN when using it. Use your hand, a checkbook, a piece of paper etc. to shield the PIN as you enter it into a bank machine or a store machine. Be especially vigilant in store queues, where somebody may be paying more attention than you. Also, be wary of "card skimmers" at ATMs; they use scanners run over the card slot to lift debit card details and they find your PIN details via camera or looking. If you shield your PIN input well, they are hampered in their attempt.[3]
- Choose a PIN password that is not obvious. Your birth date, wedding anniversary, phone number and home address are obvious picks, so just do not use them. Instead, think of numbers unrelated to major events and addresses in your life to create your PIN.[4]
- Do not write your PIN down on the card, ever. Do not even write it in a diary. If you must write it down, disguise it in some way or put it somewhere totally unrelated to the card, such as in the middle of Shakespeare’s Complete Works.
- Vary your PIN on different cards. Don’t keep the same PIN for all your cards. Have a different PIN for each one, so that if you do happen to lose your wallet, it will be much harder for the PINs to be cracked.
- Contact your bank immediately if your card is stolen or lost. Tell them immediately if you think that there is anything that may compromise your PIN, such as an easy PIN, other ID in your wallet making it easy to work out or, horror of all horrors, the PIN being written down somewhere in the wallet or on the card. Get the bank to cancel the card immediately.
- Be proactive. If you suspect any fraudulent activity using a card still in your possession, apart from notifying the bank and the police, have your PIN changed immediately.
- If you are a very forgetful person, try to memorize the PIN using memory techniques.
- One technique that works for PINs is to divide them into two groups of two digits and treat each as a year - so that, say, 8367 becomes 1983 and 1967 - and then find some event that corresponds to each year. Each event should be something personal, known only to you, or something historical but relatively obscure. From these, divise an amusing and odd phrase linking the two events, from which the events themselves, and thus the dates, cannot be easily deduced. Note this phrase down rather than the PIN itself.
- Respect the privacy of others using ATMs and card swipe machines; give them space and don’t stare at the keypad.
- Be diligent about regularly checking your bank statements to make sure no unauthorised transactions have been made using your card.
- Another way to disguise your PIN if you have to write it down is to write it as a telephone number with a fake name in your address book.
- Contact your bank immediately if an ATM eats your card. It might be used in skimming fraud.
- Do not worry about keeping your debit or credit cards near magnets; the pull of the magnet will not demagnetize the cards or wipe any information from them.[5]
- Never write your PIN on a postcard or outside of an envelope.[6]
- Debit card
Sources and Citations
- ↑ USA Today, Thieves Love Debit Cards, So Keep Them Safe - Here’s How
- ↑ Devon & Cornwall Constabulary, Keep Your PIN Numbers Safe
- ↑ USA Today, Thieves Love Debit Cards, So Keep Them Safe - Here’s How
- ↑ Scotiabank, Protect Your PIN
- ↑ Mythbusters Discussion Forum
- ↑ Citi, Keep Your Credit Safe
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