50 percent of consumers fear card fraud more than any other type of fraud according to a survey from ACI Worldwide. They're afraid that somebody will cause headaches and financial trouble by using their credit or debit card.
Nevertheless, some people aren't protecting themselves. According to the study,
"nearly one in ten consumers break the cardinal rule - never carry your PIN number with your card."
Instead of making it easy on fraudsters, try some of these PIN tips and tricks.
It's also a bad idea to make sensitive documents available to anybody who has access to your trash, but
"nearly 20 percent of U.S. consumers are still throwing bank statements and receipts in the trash bin."
This one's easy to fix as well: get a shredder or bank online so you don't have to destroy statements (plus you'll save paper and be able to view documents whenever you need to).
Finally, the study shows that people are worried about being wiped out financially if they become victims of card fraud. In many cases, you're protected against fraud as long as you meet a few criteria -- which are easy to meet, such as notifying the bank if your card is lost, reporting unauthorized transactions promptly, and so on. However, you may have some serious headaches if your checking account gets emptied and you can't pay the bills. If that's a concern, consider a credit card for everyday use instead of a debit card.