Debit Card Fraud Victimizes Iowa Consumers

Most Americans work hard for their money, keeping it tucked away in checking and savings accounts. Sadly, many consumers can lose everything – money in both checking and savings accounts – within seconds, becoming victims of financial fraud in Iowa and nationwide.

Although many Americans have become victims of credit card fraud, debit card fraud is seemingly worse. This type of financial fraud can leave victims without any money for days, weeks or months while the bank is investigating the issue. Sometimes there is no guarantee that a consumer will get all their money back. Even if they get most or all of their money back, they may still be left with late charges for missed bills.

Despite federal laws and reforms to the banking industry, consumers are left without adequate protection on their debit cards. Consumers are at risk of debit card fraud, as many companies are being hacked. For example, Citibank was hacked last summer, and approximately 21 million card numbers were stolen. Sony Online Entertainment also had a similar mass hack to over 100 million user accounts.

It is becoming much easier for hackers to steal debit card numbers from banks and other merchant databases, because, according to studies, there is a lapse in authentication security. Because PIN numbers are not used all of the time to validate debit card transactions, hackers can gain instant access to someone’s bank account.

As a result, consumers are left without money and without warning. Sometimes, they may not know they have been a victim of financial fraud for days. However, if consumers do not report the bad charges within two days, they are liable for up to $500. If the same thing happened on a credit card, a consumer could fight and would only be liable for up to $50 without any deadline for reporting the fraud. Consumers do not have the same liability protection for their debit cards as they do for their credit cards – making debit card fraud worse.

Debit card fraud in Iowa puts consumers at a greater risk, and many are left to believe that their MasterCard and Visa debit cards may be compromised with little they can do about it.

If you were a victim of debit card fraud or any type of financial fraud in Eastern Iowa, you need to find out about your rights. Contact an experienced consumer and financial fraud attorney in Cedar Rapids for more information at the Law Offices of Brady Preston Gronlund. Call (319) 866-9277 to speak with one of our skilled Eastern Iowa fraud attorneys in a free legal consultation today.