I write regularly about and identity theft. Most online merchants struggle to combat this type of crime, and detest it just as much as you do. If you are selling online or plan to do so one day, here is a bright idea used by one merchant to deal with losses due to bad .

When this online business gets an order from a non-English speaking country, the owner knows there is a potential communications problem ahead. So the customer sees a special, alternate Thank You page. The screen explains that before the product can be shipped, a photo of the credit card needs to be faxed to the company. Or, as an alternative, the client can send a photocopy of the latest credit card statement.

To compensate the purchaser for his trouble, a small amount is deducted from the total bill. The company reports that so far, fraudulent credit card orders have stopped completely.

Another online merchant just stays alert and keeps its eyes wide open. Recently, for example, it noticed that it received orders from apparently widely scattered countries all over the world. But all the orders had a ship-to address in Bucharest, Romania.

In some cases, there were three different names on a single order – one for the bill-to, one for shipping and a third on the credit card. It is not too hard to imagine there is trouble ahead!

Syd Tash is a noted computer security consultant and author of How to Protect Your Computer Online. He has been keeping Internet surfers safe and secure since the last century. Find out how he does it; protect your own computer with five layers of protection right here:
= > http://MyPCSecuritySite.com

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