Contactless Cards Are Vulnerable To Crime

The Transport for London admitted they receive at least one complaint each day from a London commuter claiming their contactless card was mistakenly charged. However, accidental payments aren’t the only concern contactless cardholders should be worried about. New reports claimed that contactless cards are also at a high risk of personal data being stolen by criminals.

According to This Is Money, the contactless card technologies may have a loophole that easily allows thieves to steal customer details and account information. The article reports that devices, such as a smartphones, have the ability to wirelessly copy consumer data from contactless cards. The fraudsters need only to slightly modify the mobile phone with technical parts that can be purchased online for cheap.

A cybercrime researcher, Martin Emms, tested the device and explained to This Is Money, “With it, we have been able to strip contactless cards of the account holder’s name, 16-digit number and expiry date. In some cases we have even been able to obtain the last ten purchases, which is one of the security questions asked by banks.”

Not only is account information more vulnerable to theft, but what about strangers picking up lost contactless cards on the street? The contactless card was designed for small payments, usually £20 and under. The transaction does not require a PIN or a signature. With one easy swipe, the items are paid for.

If a stranger were to get hold of a lost contactless card, they would be able to go on a mini-shopping spree of up to £100, since cardholders are allowed up to five £20 transactions per day.

The contactless cards were quick to be rolled out and expanded throughout the UK. With all of the recent consumer complaints, it is becoming more obvious that the technology has many loopholes.

Hopefully these problems will soon be fixed because it seems consumers face no other choice. This Is Money reports that financial institutions within the country have indicated they have full intentions to continue with contactless card accounts.

Some consumers admitted they weren’t aware their accounts even had contactless features. However, banks will continue to distribute the contactless cards, even if customers don’t explicitly request them.

To read the full story at This Is Money click here.