18 ways to foil credit card thieves

9. Copy what you carry. Every once in a while, empty your wallet onto a copier and zap an image of the front and back of your cards. Keep this info in a secure place (not in your purse or wallet) so you know which issuers to call to report stolen cards.

Watch your statements

10. Know when your statements should arrive. Missing statements could indicate that someone has stolen your mail or redirected it to a new address. Check your most recent statements for the account closing dates; most close around the same time each month, and should land in your mailbox a week or so later. Consider signing up for paperless statements, where your bank notifies you by e-mail when it's time to view your electronic statement online.

11. Review the charges. The more fastidious among you can compare your statement with receipts you've collected during the month. The rest of us should, at the very least, scan each charge to make sure we recognize the merchant and the amount and have some recollection of making the purchase.

12. Report suspicious or unauthorized charges. Call the issuer promptly and follow up in writing. Yes, sometimes you'll make a donkey of yourself, as I did in the sleep-deprived days after our daughter was born. I insisted to the customer service rep that I couldn't possibly have made a certain charge -- only to realize after her gentle questioning that, yep, I actually had. The rep was very gracious. I suspect such things happen all the time.

Police your paperwork

13. Beware of "mistakes." If a merchant makes an error processing your card, tear up the incorrect receipt or at least write "void" all over it. When presented with a receipt that has blank lines before the total, draw a line through them so that additional charges can't be added.

14. Collect, collect, collect. Gather up your "flimsies" -- credit card receipts -- rather than leaving them where any thief could copy down your account number and expiration date. Many receipts now list only the last four digits of your account number, but not all do.

15. Shred, shred, shred. Cross-cut shredders are the best, but even a $20 version will do the job. Feed it all your old credit card receipts, applications and anything else that includes sensitive financial information, such as your Social Security number.

Secure your mail

16. Opt out of credit card solicitations. Reduce the volume of pre-approved credit card offers (which can be swiped and used by thieves) by calling 1-888-5OPT OUT, which will take your name off marketing lists sold by the credit bureaus. You'll need to input your Social Security number as an identifier. Signing up for this service didn't eliminate but did significantly reduce the number of offers coming into our home.

17. Ask your issuers not to send "convenience checks." (See "Dangerous checks in the mail.") Good luck with this one. Some issuers will abide by your wishes (although it may take a while -- often these things are printed up months in advance). Others will ignore you. Be persistent.

18. Get a locking mailbox. And don't leave your outgoing mail where it can be swiped by anyone passing by; drop it off at the post office.

If you're a victim:

Despite your best efforts, you may still become a victim. Here are five things you need to know:

1. Your liability for fraud on existing accounts is limited. Technically, you could owe $50 if the thief has a chance to use a stolen card before you call the issuer to report it. But typically issuers waive that fee, particularly if you report the theft promptly. (If the thief steals your account number, rather than the card itself, you have no liability under federal law.) You may have to fill out an affidavit the issuer sends you to confirm that fraud occurred, but typically the bogus charges are removed without too much hassle.

If the fraud involves a billing dispute, you'll want to notify the issuer in writing within 60 days of when the statement containing the charges was mailed to you.

(Since you probably won't pick up the tab for credit card fraud, you may wonder who does. The answer depends on whether the merchant got an actual signature. If so -- if the transaction happened in a brick-and-mortar store, for example -- the credit card issuer is usually the one who eats the cost. If not -- if the transaction happened online or over the phone -- the merchant typically pays. Given that credit card fraud is at least 15 times more common on the Web than offline, at least according to research firm Gartner, you can see why some Internet merchants are a little paranoid.)

2. You may be in for a bigger fight with new-account fraud. If someone steals your identity to open a new credit card, you may face more skepticism from the card issuer. Lenders often require a police report before they agree to remove the account from your credit report.

3. Keep good records. Call your issuer as soon as you spot the fraud, but then follow up in writing. Use the company's address for "billing inquiries," which you'll find printed on your statement or in your account agreement; it's usually different from the place you send your payment. Keep copies of all correspondence with the issuer and any merchants involved.

4. Keep pushing. Like Robert Allen, you might run into a recalcitrant merchant or card issuer. You don't have to give up. Ask for another investigation, take your case to arbitration, contact regulators, even give your representative in Congress a call.

5. Get help if you need it. Resources like the Identity Theft Resource Center offer tools and advice for dealing with persistent credit card fraud problems.

Liz Pulliam Weston is the Web's most-read personal-finance writer. She is the author of several books, most recently "Your Credit Score: Your Money & What's at Stake." Weston's award-winning columns appear every Monday and Thursday, exclusively on MSN Money. She also answers reader questions on the Your Money message board and helps middle-class families cope at Building a Brighter Future.

Updated March 20, 2009

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