Credit v Debit card security

Palmach

I'd like to know is there a difference between the security levels on debit and credit cards. I have been told there are and there is greater protection if you use a credit card. Can anyone confirm if this is true?

Jim2007

There is no generic answer to such a question. There are many different products offered in this category and it really depends on the features offered by the provider. Typical security features often available cover things like:

• Ways to limit the exposure of the card
• Notification of transactions executed
• Approval of transactions via some kind of device
• Pre approved transactions
• Geographic restrictions
• And so on
• Cancellation and replacement features

Any of these can be offered on either type of card depending on the providing financial institution. You need to figure out what features are necessary for you and see which providers offers them and if they will sign you up.

bennyx_o

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058340915/credit-v-debit-card-security

I think the idea of better protection on a credit card stems from the days of Maestro cards, but these days, both Visa Debit & Visa Credit offer the same protection and you can do a charge back on either if needs be etc. Some providers may offer insurance etc on a debit or credit card, but this would be separate from Visa themselves

28064212

All other things being equal*, there's three main differences between credit and debit cards:

• Car-hire/hotels - some car-hire and hotel companies don't accept debit cards, or place additional restrictions on them when they do
• Danger from your own actions - you can do a lot more damage to yourself with a credit card than you can with a debit card. If you (for example) have a gambling addiction, or are susceptible to impulse shopping, it's much easier to go into serious debt with a credit card
• Where the money comes from in real time - say you have a debit card, and some bad actor has spent €1,000 on fraudulent transactions. You report it, and your issuer starts investigating. A week later, they agree it was fraudulent and refund you the money - you don't have access to that €1,000 for the week. Compare to a credit card - €1,000 comes out of the bank's account, you don't pay it until a month later. You can flag it for investigation and get it resolved before it ever comes out of your account. Note that in both situations you end up with the same result - but there's a period where having used a credit card may have been more beneficial

Generally when people ask about security differences between debit and credit cards, they just mean can you do a chargeback the same on both, and the answer to that is yes. A credit card doesn't have any extra protection in that regard just by virtue of being a credit card.

*This means same issuer, same merchants, same security team etc. etc. Whereas if you're talking about a debit card from (say) AIB vs a credit card from BOI, then there can be more differences. A fraudulent transaction that might have been flagged by one might not be flagged by the other, and vice-versa

L1011

pre-auths on debit cards also lock actual money in your account; not reduce a line of credit as they do on a credit card. They often take 14 days to lapse on debit cards too.

NewbridgeIR

I’ve been caught like this with a hotel. Pre-authorised the full charge when I arrived. Debited the full amount when I left & the pre-authorised amount took 10 days to drop off. So no access to those funds during that time. Since then, always use credit cards with hotels.

Hotblack Desiato

That's even worse than what happened to me last week. I thought the hotel was doing a pre-authorisation on my card like usual when checking in, but they actually charged me the full amount right away (and my payday was during my stay there) so just as well I offered my credit card not my debit card.

The idea of some fraudster being able to clean out my current account, cause my mortgage to go unpaid, etc. while its being investigated gives me the shivers. I don't even use my debit card in petrol stations never mind on the internet.

Hotblack Desiato

The idea that the purchaser has more protections when using a credit card goes back to 1970s UK legislation, it was never relevant here and isn't even (afaik) in the UK any more either.