Credit card crime law urgent: Police
P.C. Naommy, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government needed to urgently pass new a law on payment systems to combat rising credit card crime in the country, card groups and the police said on Thursday.
Existing laws were ineffectual and would leave criminals free when they should be behind bars, the Indonesian Credit Card Association (AKKI) and the police said.
"Current criminal laws are not effective to combat crimes using high technology," said Adj. Sr. Coms. Dharma Pongre Kur, an officer in the Jakarta Police Special Crime Division.
Without a coherent law, it would be impossible to provide assurance for credit card holders, AKKI chairman Budy Setiawan added.
Credit card crime is on the rise here. According to data from AKKI, credit card fraud cases caused losses of about Rp 60 billion (US$7.1 million) nationwide last year, 50 percent higher than Rp 40 billion in 2002.
The Central Jakarta Police are currently investigating a fraud case involving five suspects. This single case alone is estimated to have involved losses of up to Rp 40 billion.
The police have confiscated 3,900 fraudulent credit cards from the suspects and a laptop computer containing information about thousands of credit card owners.
With a device called a "scemmer", a criminal could easily duplicate credit cards, AKKI risk management coordinator Dodit W. Probojakti said. A scemmer reads and records all data from a credit card after it is swiped through a credit card machine.
Criminals could also duplicate cards by using a chip implanted in a credit car machine or through phone tapping, he said.
However, encryption, or data encoding, could prevent data theft, Dodi said.
"Data sent through phone lines can be randomized, then made available to the designated bank after going through an encryption process," he said.
A syndicate usually used people -- "jockeys" or decoys -- to hit shops with fraudulent credit cards. "They usually use women to deceive cashiers," he said.
It was important retail staff were educated so they were aware of the techniques credit card fraudsters used, he said.
Basic precautions for card holders
1. Memorize your pin number
2. Never reveal a card number, PIN number or password in response to an unsolicited phone call or e-mail.
3. Guard your payment card number.
4. When it comes to online buying, deal only with a reliable company.
5. Always keep the hotline or customer services number of the bank issuing the card.
6. Take only cards you are likely to use on any trips.
7. Do not let your card leave your sight while you make a transaction.
8. Make sure that you are holding your own card again after the transaction.