Credit/Debit Card Fraud Prevention Tips for the chiropractic practice register. The Canadian Bankers Association reports that there were 23.2 million Visa and MasterCard credit cards in circulation in 1990, a number that nearly doubled in 2000, when the association counted 40.1 million cards. At the end of 2009, the figure came in at 69.7 million credit cards, representing a net retail volume of $264.4 billion. Just over 1.2 million merchant outlets accepted cards from the two companies last year. It is clear, then, that the capability to accept and process these cards is essential to every business, including health-care practices. B The capability to accept and process cards is essential to every business, including health-care practices. This article will outline some common credit and debit card fraud situations. As well, Jeff van Duynhoven, president, TD Merchant Services, will address chiropractors with advice and tips to help practices combat and avoid debit and credit card fraud. CARD-NOT-PRESENT FRAUD One type of fraud that business owners fall victim to is card-not-present fraud. This type of fraud refers to transactions that occur without the presence of the actual cardholder or their credit card. Clients provide only a credit card number over the phone, online or by mail. While the vast majority of these transactions are performed by legitimate clients, because the card is never presented to business owners, there is no way of checking its validity using the various security features of the card itself. This may not always be relevant to chiropractors charging for treatments in their offices, but may apply to those doctors who sell products to clients, or register attendees for seminars, courses, etc., especially through websites. 80 • CANADIAN CHIROPRACTOR | SEPTEMBER 2010 www.canadianchiropractor.ca illions of card transactions take place in businesses across Canada each year, mak-ing debit and credit cards an essential part of everyday life. With each passing decade, more Canadians are choosing to go cashless, and swipe and sign at the feature
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