Aussies vulnerable to credit card crime

Australians should be aware their country is a popular target for debit and credit card fraud.

Brian Hay, Detective Superintendent of Queensland Police, points out that in the past a number of ATMs in Queensland have been used as skimming devices - which record the magnetic stripe and pin numbers of debit and credit cards - by Russian and Bulgarian criminals operating in Toronto.

Pointing out that the country is more susceptible to credit card fraud and cyber crime due to a reliance on magnetic stripe data instead of chip and pin technology, Detective Superintendent Hay also tells ABC Online that Aussies should take care when shopping online.

"People have to take responsibility if they're going to go online, if they're going to conduct commercial transactions," he claims, advising that consumers ensure they have the latest anti-virus software installed on their computers.

In a January article for Lifehacker Australia, Angus Kidman claims that although credit card fraud rates are on the rise, people can lessen the chance of being a victim of such crime by shopping for goods from a reputable online retailer.